


The Christmas Wish

by thatwriterlady



Category: Supernatural
Genre: A Child Lost Her Father, Christmas, Dean Has Custody Of His Niece, Don't Let The Tags Scare You, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, Family, Family Drama, Feelings, First Christmas Without Her Dad, First Kiss, Fluff, Grief/Mourning, Healing, Heartache, Holidays, If You Know My Writing You Know I Won't Torture You With Angst, It's Sweet I Promise, Letters to Santa, Letting Go Of Anger, Loss of Parent(s), Love, M/M, Minor Character Death, Not Romantic Heartache, Raising a Child, Romance, coming together, selflessness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-16 23:37:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 29,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13064565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatwriterlady/pseuds/thatwriterlady
Summary: Little Maya Winchester has been through a lot in her short life.  She never knew her mom, she died just after Maya was born, and her grandma was gone before that.  Her grandfather died when she was little leaving her with just her dad.  When she loses him too, her Uncle Dean steps in, taking custody of her, but it's not just a responsibility.  Maya is family and he loves her more than words can say.  He relocates to South Dakota to take care of her, and it's going to take a lot of healing and a lot of adjusting for them both as they learn how to live with one another.As the holidays approach, Maya finds that she has only one wish.  When a school assignment comes around asking her to write a letter to Santa, she does exactly that, except she doesn't ask for anything for herself.  Little Maya Winchester, who has lost nearly everyone in her life who has mattered most to her, just wants her Uncle Dean to be happy.  One selfless gesture, from an eight year old girl to Santa.  Now how can he resist such a simple request?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Don't let the tags scare you. Those of you that follow my work, you know it's not my style to torture my characters. That being said, the beginning IS sad, but it serves an important purpose, and it will lead to the development of other characters later on in the story. Oh, and by the way? SAM IS NOT MAYA'S DAD. Just an FYI there.
> 
> Also, I don't want to hear too much flack about the fact that Sam's barely in this one. This is a DESTIEL story, not Destiel plus Sam. He has his own life where I placed him out in California, and this story needed to revolve around Dean trying to acclimate to his new life without his usual support network, of which Sam was a big part. So I needed him to NOT be there for this one. Dean needed to be a big boy and go this all by himself. You'll understand as the story progresses, I hope.
> 
> I do hope you like the characters. Fair warning, you may want to grab your box of tissues and keep it close. There are a few times you may want to dab at your eyes. I'm particularly proud of this one. 
> 
> Now, to give proper thanks to the people that helped:
> 
> To
> 
>  
> 
> **[Monijune](https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/monijune) \- ** who lovingly puts up with me throwing these long fics at her, and bending her ear with all of my self doubts over whether what I've written is any good or not. She is my angel, and goodness knows she puts up with A LOT from me. She has been my beta for a good portion of my work for the past three year now. Problem is, I write much faster than she can edit, and I feel incredibly guilty, so I don't send everything her way. She says I don't really ever need THAT much work anyways, lol. But I am always thankful for how nice my stories look once she has polished them. Check out her Tumblr in the link above.
> 
>  
> 
> The header in this story was created by the lovely 
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> **[noxsoulmate](http://archiveofourown.org/users/noxsoulmate/profile) \- ** , and to whom I am very grateful. It is beautiful, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
> 
>  
> 
> Lastly, thank you to 
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> **XHaruka17X \- ** for helping me figure out how to do links and add borders and make things all nice and stuff cause I know absolutely squat in the technical department, lol. I have a degree in business management, not computers. I hold an utterly useless degree! 
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, thank you ladies for all of your hard work, it is so very much appreciated. Now, on to the story. I do hope everyone enjoys this one, and that the love that flows through the Winchester family here will also flow through your hearts. Little Maya is set to steal your hearts, just you wait and see.

 

 

 

 

 

**The Christmas Wish~**

 

Dean sat at the kitchen table and looked over the paperwork again.  His heart was heavy, but it needed to be done, and it needed to be signed.  He wiped at his eyes and sniffled.  This was one of the hardest things he’d ever had to do, besides bury his dad and stepmom, and it felt like his heart was being torn in two.  He’d called his brother Sam to come over because trying to do this on his own was just too much, but now he was thinking Sam was the wrong person to lean on since his brother was openly sobbing beside him.

 

“They’re custody papers, Dean.  Y-you just sign them and you become h-her legal guardian.”  Sam’s voice was catching from all his crying and it wasn’t helping Dean’s own grief.  In two days’ time they had to bury their youngest brother Adam.  It wasn’t fair, having to bury a young man who was practically still a child himself.

 

“I know, Sammy.  I’m just…this feels….he’s really _gone_.”

 

“I know.”  Sam’s voice cracked and his face crumpled as he burst into tears again.  

 

“I sign these, and, uh, when do I get her?”  Dean looked up at the woman sitting across from them.  Tessa was the social worker assigned to his case and he was grateful for her patience and understanding with everything their family had gone through.

 

“We want her with family, so we can get her settled here with you by this weekend.”  She replied.

 

“No, not my place.  Adam willed me the house too.  For Maya.  I’ll move in there, so her life is not disrupted.  I don’t want her giving everything up to move into my tiny one bedroom apartment in L.A.”  Dean said.  “I’ll make the move here.”

 

She smiled and nodded.  “That’s even better for her.”

 

“I’ll call my friend Jo, get her to start packing my place up tonight and ship my stuff out here for me.”  He said.

 

“I’m moving out here too.”  Sam decided.  “To be near to you both.”

 

“You’re sure?”  Dean asked skeptically.

 

“I’m certain.”  Sam replied.

 

Dean was glad.  He didn’t want his only remaining family member, save for Maya to be halfway across the country.  First though, they had to get through burying their baby brother.

 

 

 

The funeral was surreal and moving in was even more so.  Soon Dean found himself with a sad, lethargic eight year old thrust at him and he was terrified he would screw up and do something wrong by her.  It was February, cold out, and there wasn’t much he could do to cheer her up.  As soon as he’d arrived in Jasper Falls South Dakota, he’d known he was out of his element.  He’d been a mechanic with a successful business back in L.A., but he’d also been a musician with a pretty successful band.  Even in a state like California he’d easily gotten by on his income.  Now he was forced to give up his music and find steady work at the only place currently hiring in town; the post office.  It paid well, and combined with the life insurance policy left behind by his brother, there would be enough money to take care of Maya and everything she would need.  She was what mattered now.

 

The school recommended a therapist and Dean thought that was a great idea, for both of them.  He sought out one that specialized in children for his niece and one that could help him adapt to his new parental role and everything that came with it for himself.  Slowly they began learning how to live together.  Maya was bright, bubbly, and the sweetest child imaginable, and he found himself falling more in love with her than he felt was even possible.

 

Growing up, he’d only had limited contact with his brother Adam.  After his parents had divorced, his father, John had taken a job in Minnesota where he’d taken a job.  Dean has been nine at the time, Sam only five.  John had met his second wife Kate less than a month after relocating there and less than a year later, they were married.  Dean remembered how upset his mother, Mary had been, though she wouldn’t tell him why.  He was only ten at the time and he thought it was because she was jealous, that their dad had found a new woman to love.  Now, as an adult he understood it better.  His father had moved on from the family he had promised to love and cherish, and he’d built himself a new one.  John had abandoned Mary and his first two sons.  Dean never harbored any ill will towards Kate or Adam though.  It wasn’t their fault, and Kate was never anything but loving towards him and Sam.  Sam, however, was a spiteful little shit who refused to go visit, and refuse to acknowledge Kate as his stepmother or Adam as his brother for more than a decade.

 

It took time for Sam to finally grow up and get over his petty selfishness.  Dean, however, took every opportunity to visit his second family out in Minnesota, not so much because he wanted to see his dad, but because he wanted to get to know his little brother, to bond with him and spend time with him.  Adam was a great kid, smart like Sam, daring like him, sarcastic like both of them, and fun to be around.  When, at 17 he decided he wanted to join the Marines, no one was really surprised.  Their dad had been a Marine, and so had Dean.  The day he turned 18, he enlisted, and right after graduation, he was headed off to boot camp.  Things went to shit while he was away though.

 

Just after he’d finished boot camp, Kate was struck by another driver on her way home from work.  It had been raining hard and the other driver had never seen her black car in the rain and dark.  The coroner swore she had died instantly.  Adam was permitted to come home for the wake and funeral, and while he was there, his girlfriend Anna did her best to console him.  Her idea of consolation led to her getting pregnant, and when he ended up stationed at Camp Lejeune North Carolina, he called her out there to marry him.  Dean went as his best man, and Sam and John were there too.  It was a sweet wedding, and Dean really wished them a lifetime of happiness, but the fates really seemed to have it in for his baby brother.

 

Anna’s pregnancy was complicated almost from the start.  She’d been born with an undiagnosed congenital heart defect that they didn’t find until she was six months pregnant, and not until she had begun to develop pre-eclampsia.  She was put on bed rest, which Adam took dead serious, pampering her and giving her everything she could possibly need or want in order to make sure she was comfortable.  For being only 19, he was an ideal husband and soon to be father, and Dean admired him.  Then tragedy struck again.  When Anna went into labor two weeks early, she went into cardiac arrest.  They did an emergency C-section, taking the baby so there would be less stress on her body but by then the damage was done.  She made it to recovery, got to see her baby girl and hold her, kiss her and name her Maya Janelle Grace Winchester, but that night, as she closed her eyes to get some rest at Adam’s insistence, her heart stopped beating for the last time.  Adam was alone with a newborn baby, and his heart was torn in two.  He’d already seen too much tragedy for someone so young, and Dean’s heart broke for his little brother.

 

He stayed for a while, to help with the baby after Anna’s funeral.  Adam had to keep working but Dean couldn’t stay on the base, so he took Maya back to Minnesota, to their father John’s house.  John spoiled his granddaughter, and he loved watching her grow.  When he got a new job in South Dakota, Maya went with him, and when Adam’s enlistment was up, he joined them there.  He bought a house, used the degree he’d earned in electrical engineering to get a fantastic job, and his life was really starting to look up again.  Dean made regular trips out there to see them, and he had a special bond with his only niece.  Sam didn’t have any kids yet, so Maya was spoiled rotten.  Last year, John had gotten sick.  He’d hidden the fact that for the last ten years he’d been fighting cancer.  It finally won, and they buried him on a warm spring morning in March.  All that were left were the Winchester boys and Maya.  Then the unthinkable happened.

 

Dean had just finished an unbelievable set, playing to a crowd so loud the cheering had been downright deafening and had left him riding a high all the way back to his dressing room, until he saw the message waiting for him.  His Uncle Bobby had called, saying it was urgent and he needed to call him back ASAP.  Bobby wasn’t really his uncle, he was their dad’s best friend, but when he needed to pull weight and get a message to Dean, he used the word “uncle”.  That meant something bad had happened.  It had been with a growing sense of dread in his stomach that he’d called Bobby back and gotten the news.

 

Adam had been shot.  He’d gone out on a date, his first since Anna died, and they were with a group of friends.  They’d all gone out to a bar and a fight broke out.  Someone had pulled a gun.  Adam had attempted to disarm the man and…

 

 

 

He’d flown out that night on the red eye, not even caring that planes scared the shit out of him, and gone straight to the hospital to identify the body.  In the last decade he’d shed more tears than any one person should ever have to, and there would still be more.  His dad and Kate dying had been painful but nothing compared to losing his little brother.  Adam wasn’t even 30 yet, he’d had his whole life ahead of him.  He was supposed to be there to warn Maya’s future boyfriends or girlfriends to treat her well, to remind her how beautiful and amazing she was, to call her daddy’s little princess until he was old and gray, to walk her down the aisle on her wedding day.  Dean’s heart shattered when he saw his brother lying cold and lifeless on that metal table, and he mourned for his niece all of the things she would miss out on.  He had to compose himself before he could even go and see her.  He was the adult, the mature one that was supposed to be strong.  She needed him to be strong for her, and he intended to be.  

 

In the end, he did end up being the stronger one.  Sam, surprisingly, was the one that couldn’t stop crying.  He had eventually bonded with Adam and they’d become rather close, but never quite as close as Dean had been with him, which was why the day he’d arrived, a lawyer had approached him about taking custody of Maya, and about the insurance policy that had been established for her.  He’d never wavered in his acceptance of the responsibility.  Maya was family, and he loved her dearly.  He’d go to the end of the earth for her, even if he had to learn how exactly to be a father.

 

By summer they had established a routine, and things were going pretty good.  Maya had finished up second grade and was eagerly anticipating starting third.  Her grades had only suffered slightly, much to Dean’s surprise, with everything she’d been through, and therapy seemed to really be helping her.  It was helping him too, being able to talk about his fears, his hopes, his regrets and his concerns where Maya was concerned.  Sam still hadn’t moved out there to be by them, so aside from the occasional visit from Bobby, Dean was pretty much doing things all on his own.  He’d made a couple of friends at the post office, Garth, another carrier who loved to talk his ear off in the break room as they got their morning coffee, and Donna, the only other person he’d ever met that was even bubblier than Garth.  He liked them both though, and got along well with each of them.  

 

In September Sam called to tell him he’d met someone.  Her name was Eileen, and he was pretty sure he was in love with her.  She was a security specialist and Dean knew moving just wasn’t going to be an option for him anymore.  It kind of stung knowing he and Maya would continue to be alone but hey, if Sam had found the love of his life, maybe soon she’d have some cousins to play with.  He couldn’t begrudge his brother finding love.  Sometimes he wished he could find it himself.  When he’d played with the band his life had been too hectic to even think of settling down and while he loved playing music, he didn’t love the constant movement, the new cities every night, the sense of never being truly settled.  So maybe delivering mail wasn’t the most fulfilling job he could imagine, at least he felt grounded.  He was home every night, had dinner on the table and could help Maya with her homework, get her into the shower and into bed on time, and still have time to kick back and relax for a bit before he had to head to bed.  One day, he wanted to open his own automotive shop.  He had money saved.  Another couple thousand and maybe one more classic rebuilt and he’d have what he’d need to do it.  He just needed to have patience.

 

 

 

Maya tucked a lock of her dark red hair behind her ear and watched her uncle from her seat at the table.  She could see him sitting in the living room, staring at the television, though she was pretty sure he wasn’t _really_ watching what was on because that was a commercial for diaper cream.  He always changed the channel when that kind came on.  That meant he was deep in thought again.  There were lines on his forehead and a tiny frown on his mouth which meant he was probably worrying about her again.  She didn’t like it when he worried about her.  What she really wanted was for him to be happy.  They’d been living together for almost a year now and he was the best uncle ever.  He read her stories at bedtime, he played at the park with her, he got her enrolled in dance and karate classes, and once, he’d even said it was ok to have ice cream for breakfast. That had been _awesome_!  

 

The commercial changed to one about women’s underwear, and still he didn’t move.  He was thinking extra hard.  When he sighed, his shoulders slumped and he looked so sad all of a sudden.  Every time she asked him if he was sad though, he denied it, saying he was just tired.  She looked down at the paper in front of her and tapped her pencil on the edge of it thoughtfully.  This was a preformed letter, meant to be written to Santa.  It could say anything she wanted it to.  All she had to do was write down what she wished for and then with help from her teacher, her letter would be put in an envelope and mailed straight to Santa up at the North Pole.  Her teacher had said they needed to get the letters sent out early, so Santa could have the time to read them all, and that was why they were mailing them out at the beginning of November.  All she knew is she had to write _something_ down.

 

She thought about the things she really wanted.  There wasn’t much really that she didn’t already have.  Unlike some kids her age, she wasn’t greedy or selfish, nor was she materialistic.  With one last glance over at her uncle, she decided what she really wanted, more than presents for herself, was for him to be happy.  She just wasn’t sure what would make him cheer up.  Hopefully Santa would know.  Her pencil scratched across the paper as she wrote out her list, and 15 minutes later, after she had filled up the entire paper, she folded it neatly in half and placed it back in her folder.  She’d been so good this year, Santa just _had_ to grant this one wish for her.  Her Uncle Dean deserved to be happy.

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

“Ok, why the long face?”

 

“What?”  Dean looked up from filling his thermos with coffee to see Garth had come into the break room.

 

“You look down, buddy. What’s going on?”  Garth opened the fridge and pulled out the container of orange juice he’d brought to work.

 

“Do you…think I’m doing a good job with Maya?  Dean asked.  Garth followed him over to the table where they sat down across from one another.

 

“Yeah, you’re doing a great job.  You’ve done everything right by that little girl.  You got her into therapy, you make sure you’re home every night spending time with her, you take her fun places, and you’ve made that precious little girl smile when she thought she’d never be able to again.  It takes a very special person to be able to do that.”  He opened the juice and took a swig.  “Why are you doubting yourself all of a sudden?”

 

“I don’t know.  She’s been real quiet lately, and she keeps asking me if I’m happy.  It doesn’t matter if I’m happy, she’s the one that matters.”  Dean sighed and took a sip of his coffee.  He checked his watch.  Twenty minutes left til he had to get out on the road and start delivering mail.

 

“Of course your happiness matters.  You’re her family and you’re important to her.  She’s not truly happy unless you’re happy too.   _ Are  _ you happy?”  

 

Dean sat with the mug of coffee pressed to his lips for a long moment, just staring at one of the posters on the other side of the room.

 

“I guess…I miss stuff.  I’m not,  _ not _ happy, I’m just missing my music, my old friends that I don’t get to see anymore, and my brother Sam.  He’s staying out in Cali, not moving out here like he’d originally planned.  I sort of feel like I’m on my own here, and I guess I’m just a little lonely.”

 

“Not dating anyone?”  Garth guessed.

 

Dean huffed out a laugh and shook his head.  “No, not dating.  How can I?  I have a kid now.”

  
  


“Man, single parents date all the time.  It’s a matter of finding a sitter and getting out once in awhile.  No one will blame you for taking a couple hours for yourself every now and then, especially while she’s sleeping.”

 

Dean considered that for a minute.  He still didn’t think he was ready to date, it felt sort of wrong, but maybe he could talk to Maya about it and see what she thought about it.  The office manager walked in with Donna and another woman whose hair was so red it looked like it was on fire.  The two women were chatting like old friends, not that Dean was surprised.  Donna could make instant friends with anyone.

 

“Dean, Garth, this here’s Charlie.  She’s going to be handling the influx of “Dear Santa” letters this year.  Her job is to respond to the emails and letters.  If you get any, you’ll deposit them in the clearly marked box outside her office.”  Chuck explained.  Dean stood up and offered his hand.

 

“Nice to meet you.”

 

She shook it firmly, offering him the same kind of warm, friendly smile Donna always gave.  Right away he knew they were going to get along great.

 

“Nice to meet you too, Dean.  You play video games by chance?”

 

“Sure do.  Have three game systems.”  He wondered what she was asking that for.

 

“What do you like to play?” 

 

“I have different ones I like to play.  Right now, I’ve been playing Call of Duty WWII a lot.”  He replied.

 

“I haven’t played that yet.  I’ll have to try that one.  We should talk later, about games, and maybe movies too.”  She smiled again before turning back to Donna and asking her to show her where her new office was.  Chuck checked his watch.

 

“You two better get moving.”

 

Dean drained the last of his coffee and went to rinse his cup while Garth put his juice in the fridge.  They made their way out of the room and down the hall.  It was time to head to their trucks.

 

“See you on the flip side.”  Garth said, saluting him.  Dean grinned and saluted him back.

 

“Yep, on the flip side.”

 

 

Charlie was mildly overwhelmed by the sheer number of emails waiting for her to respond to.  She closed her eyes and took a deep, cleansing breath.  When she opened them, she clicked on the first email.  It was from six year old Jaydyn from the Bronx, and she wanted My Little Ponies and chocolate candies.  Charlie’s heart melted at the simple yet sweet request.  It only took her a few minutes to type out a response, and then she was on to the next one.  All morning she responded to email after email, answering close to 200 before she ever got to lunch.  The reason she’d been hired for this was because she was not only good with computers, she was wicked fast as well.  

 

While eating her salad for lunch, she answered more emails.  A man named Jose brought a cart in filled to overflowing with letters addressed to Santa and her good mood drained instantly away.  How was she supposed to answer these?  Writing out responses would take three times as long as answering them via email, and she’d never get to all of them before Christmas.  Jose noticed her crestfallen look and leaned against her desk for a second.

 

“You wondering how you can answer them all?”

 

“Yeah.  It’s impossible!”  She plucked one off the top of the pile.  It was thick and when she opened it she found a piece of folded construction paper inside.  Once unfolded she saw it contained a picture of Santa in the North Pole, complete with sleigh, reindeer, and elves.  It brought a smile to her face.

 

“Actually, it’s not.  You have a computer and the program to write out letters on fancy paper.  All you have to do is put them in the envelopes and print out the labels.  We do the rest.”  He said.

 

“I didn’t even think of that.  Thanks!”  Her good mood immediately came back.  She still doubted she could get through all of these emails and letters before Christmas, but she was certainly going to give it her most valiant effort.  He pushed off the desk and started for the door.

 

“If you have trouble keeping up, talk to Chuck.  He’ll maybe be able to scrounge up some people to pitch in and help you.  But ask before it’s too late.”

 

“I will, thank you.”  

 

He gave a wave before walking out and closing the door behind himself.  She looked at the picture again.  It was adorable.  No requested presents, so all she had to do was give little Molly Tarrington a thank you letter in return.  She could totally do this.

 

 

Dean got back to the post office at ten after five.  After offloading his truck and heading inside, he went inside to drop off the Christmas cards he had collected on his route.  As he approached the office Chuck has set up for Charlie, he grinned.  The sound of Motorhead could be heard through the closed door.  Rather than just dump the letters in the waiting bin outside, he knocked and then opened it, poking his head in to see her typing rapidly on the computer.  She paused, looking up and smiling when she saw him.

 

“Hey!  Got more letters?”

 

“Sure do.  How was your first day?”  He stepped into the room and set the container of Christmas letters down on the corner of her desk.  Her eyes widened when she saw how many there were.

 

“I made progress, but I’m not sure I’ll really make a dent if they keep pouring in this fast.  Are there really this many children in this area?”

 

“I think we should be sorting them out, moving the ones on that don’t apply to local children.  Donna and maybe Becky could help do that tomorrow.  Forward them on to zip codes closer to where those children live so that your load is reduced.  In this county we have roughly 300,000 people, and about a third of that is kids, but not all of them are of the Santa Claus believing age, so you shouldn’t have  _ that _ many letters.”  He picked up a letter on the top.  “Schools are all running projects though, and they’re expecting Santa to write back.  The elementary school is on my route, so there are a couple hundred letters from the kids in here.”

 

“Oh, I’ll make sure I answer those tomorrow then.  In fact, I might just take those home and work on them there.  Then I can get my wife to help me.”

 

“Hey, extra help never hurt anyone.”  He smiled as he dropped the letter back in the box.  

 

“I’ll take it where I can get it.  She’s good with computers too.  If we both spend a few hours tonight typing out at least the email responses, I can concentrate on the actual letters tomorrow.  It will go so much faster.”  She wiggled her fingers before rolling her shoulders.  “Is it six yet?”

 

“No, you’re here til six?”

 

“Yeah.  I’m drained.”  She stifled a yawn as she reached for one of the letters in the bin he’d just brought in.

 

“I bet.  Don’t overwork yourself.  I have to get home, my niece is waiting and the neighbor is watching her.   I’ll see you tomorrow.”  He started for the door.  “Good luck with all of this.”

 

“Thanks.  I’m having fun.  This is an interesting experience.”  She opened the envelope and slid the piece of paper out.  “These are so cute, I can’t wait to answer them all.”

 

Dean left as Charlie began typing out a response to the first of the elementary school letters.  He needed to get home to Maya before she drove Mrs. Peters nuts.

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

 

“My?”  He called out as he opened the back door and stepped inside.  “Mrs. Peters?”

 

“Mrs. Peters had to leave, her daughter Rose was in a car accident, I’m Castiel, I live on the other side of her house.  She asked me to keep an eye on Maya until you got home.  She said she messaged you.”  

 

Dean startled at the sound of the deep voice and turned to see a man standing in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room.  He’d met his neighbor Castiel only a handful of times but he’d never had him over to the house.  Having the ridiculously attractive man inside his home made his stomach do a sudden flip.  He had no idea he’d be here.

 

“She messaged me?”

 

“Several times.  She was frantic, Rose was very badly hurt.  I tried reaching you as well.”  Castiel replied.  “She left me your number.”  He pointed over Dean’s shoulder at the fridge.  Dean turned to see the list of emergency numbers stuck there with a magnet, of which his was at the top.  He pulled his phone out to check but it had apparently died.

 

“Oh, it died, I didn’t get any messages.  The battery hasn’t been holding a charge lately.  I really need a new phone.”  Dean plugged it into the charger on the counter and stripped his jacket off.  “Where’s Maya?”

 

“Doing her homework.  She came home with a great deal of it.  Too much for a child her age.”  Castiel clicked his tongue and frowned.  Dean found himself smiling.  

 

“They really do overload them with homework nowadays.  I thought it was bad when I was a kid but it’s ridiculous now for her.”

 

His phone lit up and he looked down to see a dozen texts, from Mrs. Peters and from an unknown number he assumed was Castiel’s.  He really hoped Rose was ok.

 

“I teach 5 th and 6 th grade math and science, so I helped her with most of it.  She’s just writing a book report right now.  I don’t think I wrote my first book report until 4 th or 5 th grade.  They’re pushing things on children much earlier now.”  Castiel walked into the room, stopping at the island and placing his hands on it.  He watched as Dean stripped his coat off and hung it on the hook by the back door.

 

“I didn’t know you were a teacher.  That’s pretty cool.”

 

“Maya says you’re a musician.”

 

“Was.  I  _ was _ a musician.  Now I deliver the mail.”  Dean flicked the patch on his shirt that identified him as a postal carrier.  

 

“It’s a noble job.”  Castiel said.  Maya came bouncing into the kitchen, smiling wide when she saw her uncle was home.

 

“Uncle Dean!”  She ran over and wrapped her arms around his legs, hugging him tight.  He hugged her back.

 

“Hey, sweetheart, how was school?”

 

“It was ok.  I don’t like math.”  She grumbled.  Dean smiled as Castiel snickered.

 

“But you understood it when I explained it to you.”  The teacher said.  She sighed and tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear.

 

“Yeah, but I still don’t like it.”

 

Castiel smiled fondly at her before meeting Dean’s gaze.  “To be fair, I wasn’t fond of math at that age either.  I preferred art and music.”

 

“So did I.  And English.  I actually liked writing papers.”  Dean said.

 

“I did as well.”  Castiel agreed.  He was looking at Dean, and Dean was looking right back at him.  Maya stared between the two of them for a moment before she got an idea.

 

“Say, Uncle Dean?  Can Mr. Novak stay for dinner?”

 

Dean blinked and looked down at his niece.  “I’m sure he has to get home to his family.  I wouldn’t want to keep him.”

 

“Mr. Novak’s not married and doesn’t have kids.  Just his cats Link and Zelda.  Can we order some pizza and watch a movie?”  She came around the counter to stand next to Castiel, offering him her most winning smile.  Dean narrowed his eyes at her as he grabbed a flyer for the pizza place he’d been ordering from off the side of the fridge.  What was she up to?

 

“If you don’t have anyone to get home to, you’re welcome to stay.”

 

“I don’t want to impose.”  Castiel was honestly blushing when he looked at Dean next.  

 

“You’re not.  I just thought maybe you had a wife and kids waiting, and I didn’t want to keep you from them.”  Dean set the flyer on the island and pushed it over.  “What kind do you like?”

 

They decided on what pizzas they wanted and then Dean excused himself to go and change out of his uniform.  Maya and Castiel were in the living room when he came back downstairs, and his niece was kneeling in front of the coffee table working on her homework.  Castiel was sitting quietly in a corner of the couch reading a book but he looked up when Dean walked in and smiled.

 

“Maya says you moved here from California.  Are you from there?”  He asked.

 

“No, I’m actually from Kansas.”  Dean replied as he sat down on the other end of the couch.

 

“Kansas, really?  I’ve never been there.  But…”  Castiel’s eyes flickered down to Maya before meeting Dean’s once more.  “Maya was born here?”

 

“Yes.  Her father was my half-brother.  We had different mothers.  He was raised out here.  I moved to California with my brother Sam when he was in college and I liked it out there, so I stayed.  I had a pretty successful band, but I like being here.”  Dean said.

 

“I knew Adam, he was very nice.  He had me over for barbecues on occasion, and I had him over once in awhile as well.  He spoke fondly of his older brothers.”  Castiel smiled softly.  Dean felt that familiar ache in his chest whenever he talked about his brother, but it was nice getting to talk to someone that knew him outside of their family.

 

“He was a good man, and a good dad.  I’m doing what I can to make him proud.”

 

“You’re doing a wonderful job.”  

 

Dean looked down at Maya who was busy writing the last of her paper.  Was he really doing a good job with her?  She seemed happy, especially today.  

 

“So, you live alone?  Just you and two awesomely named cats?”

 

Castiel laughed and nodded.  “Yes, I happen to like video games, and when I adopted them, the names just felt right.”

 

“They’re great names.  I haven’t had the chance to really get to know most of the neighbors.  Mrs. Peters was letting me drop Maya off at her house in the morning so she could just catch the bus out front, and then she would be here to let her in after school.  Was Rose hurt badly?  I’ll have to call and check on her.  I don’t know what I’m going to do about tomorrow.”  Dean scratched at his jaw as he thought about that.  He might have to call Chuck and tell him he wasn’t coming in.  

 

“Well, it sounded like it was a bad accident.  I don’t think Evelyn will be home for awhile, but if it will help you out, I can see Maya off to school in the mornings and the elementary school gets out a half hour after the middle school, so I can get back here before she gets home.  So she can stay at my house if you like, or here if that’s better.  Until you get home from work.  I’ll just be sitting and grading papers while she does her homework, and if she needs any help, I’ll be available to assist.”  Castiel offered.  “I really don’t mind.  I just sit at home alone otherwise.”

 

“I don’t want to impose.”  Dean found himself saying again.  Castiel quirked a smile.

 

“You’re really not.  I enjoy the company.  It’s much more pleasant than spending my evenings alone.”  

 

Maya jumped up and flopped back on the couch between them.  She thrust the paper she’d been working on in her uncle’s face.

 

“I hate book reports!”  She declared.  He chuckled as he took it and read over it.  

 

“They serve a purpose though.  The teacher knows you actually read the book, but writing the reports also helps to expand your vocabulary and your writing ability.”  Castiel explained.

 

“I read the books.  I like reading.  I just don’t like writing the reports.  I’d rather write my own stories, that’s more fun.”  She said.

 

“This is good.  I don’t see any spelling errors.”  Dean passed the paper over to Castiel when the doorbell rang and stood up.  

 

“I’m going to go grab the paper plates!”  Maya announced before jumping up and running into the kitchen.

 

“I wish I had that much energy still.”  Castiel chuckled as he sat forward to gather up her homework so Dean could set down the pizza boxes.

 

“Me too.  She has so much energy that sometimes I just feel so old.”  Dean laughed as he set the boxes down.  

 

“How many years were there between you and Adam?  If I’m prying, I apologize.”

 

“No, it’s ok.  I’m the oldest.  I was 11 when he was born.  Sam was eight.  Adam was young when he and Anna had Maya.  He had his whole life ahead of him at only 19.  Always had his head on straight though.  His mom had an insurance policy in place when she died, so did our dad.  It’s how he was able to buy this house.  I’m sure you knew what he did for a living, and that he was widowed.”  Dean accepted the plates and napkins Maya brought back and motioned towards the TV so she could go pick out a movie.  

 

“I knew bits and pieces.  We talked here and there.  I babysat sometimes, especially the last year or so when he began dating more.  I didn’t mind.  Sometimes I’ll have my nieces and nephews, and they’re right around Maya’s age.  She always enjoyed playing with them.  My nephew Carson is in her class.”  Castiel accepted the plate Dean handed him and found the box with the meat lovers pizza.  He selected two slices and took a napkin as he sat back on the couch.  Dean watched him take a bite before he grabbed his own food and put a slice on another plate for Maya.  

 

“Do you like boys or girls?”  Maya asked as she took the plate her uncle handed her and sat down between them.  Dean gasped in shock as she stared up at Castiel.  His eyebrows rose in surprise but his mouth was full and he wasn’t able to immediately answer.  

 

“Maya, that is an inappropriate question.”  Dean said before looking apologetically at Castiel.

 

“I only asked because Jenny Sharpe told me I’m pretty and she wants me to be her girlfriend.  I don’t like girls.  Or boys.  I told her that, and then she cried.  She thought I was saying she’s ugly, but I wasn’t.  She’s pretty, but…I don’t want to kiss anyone.  If you have a girlfriend or a boyfriend, you have to kiss them, don’t you?  Kissing is gross.”  She wrinkled her nose before taking a bite of her pizza.  Dean stared at her for a long time, feeling lost over how to handle this particular situation.  Thankfully, Castiel had swallowed his food and was able to step in.

 

“Maya, you’re only eight.  You don’t have to kiss anyone.  I had my first girlfriend when I was nine, mostly because she marched up to me on the playground and told me I was her boyfriend.  We never kissed, never held hands, we just sat together, played together, and sat on the bus together.  I think maybe once I held her hand.  By summer we had broken up and the following school year she had moved on.  It was no loss to me.  I had another girlfriend in 6 th grade, and it was pretty much the same situation.  She was my science partner and just told me one day that we were dating.  I went along with it.  Now she did try to kiss me, and I was uncomfortable with it, so I told her no.  She tried a few times and every time I told her I didn’t want to.  Eventually we broke up because of it.  Do not ever let anyone pressure you into doing something you don’t want to do.  Use your words, and remember that it’s perfectly ok to say no.”  

 

“So…if I said yes to Jenny, I don’t  _ have _ to kiss her?”  Maya asked.

 

“No, you don’t have to kiss her.”  

 

She turned to look up at her uncle.  “Is that ok?  Daddy always said I couldn’t date until I was 40.”

 

Dean felt a lump form in his throat and his eyes began to sting but he managed a small laugh.  He placed a hand on the back of Maya’s head and pulled her just close enough so he could kiss the top of her head.

 

“Yes, sweetheart.  And so you know, your dad wasn’t really serious about that.  He was being protective, but he was joking.  All dads want to protect their little girls.”

 

“That’s what I thought.”  She took another bite of her food and chewed it thoughtfully.  After swallowing it, she looked up at him again.  “Is Uncle Sam going to get married?”

 

“I don’t know.  He hasn’t dated Eileen long enough for us to know whether he’ll want to marry her.”  Dean replied.

 

“Is he going to kiss her?”

 

Dean looked over the top of her head at Castiel with wide, green eyes that got the teacher laughing.  

 

“Maya, honey, when two people are in love, they do kiss.  Usually when they’re much older than you are right now.”  He told her.

 

“So Uncle Sam will kiss Eileen if he loves her?”  She asked.  He nodded.

 

“That’s right.  If he loves her a whole lot, he may ask her to marry him, but that’s not something you rush into.  People need to take their time and get to know one another first before they talk about marriage.  So let your Uncle Sam get to know Eileen, and let him fall in love with her.”

 

“Uncle Dean says she’s coming for Christmas, and so is Mary, that’s Uncle Dean and Uncle Sam’s mom.  But Eileen is deaf.  I don’t know sign language so I have to learn it.”  Maya said.

 

A small furrow formed between Dean's brow at his niece's words. She had no idea yet that their Christmas plans had changed. She'd still get to meet Eileen, just not quite yet. Castiel seemed to notice but said nothing, and thankfully didn't draw attention to it. 

 

“Oh, well, there’s a program I can give your uncle to help you learn it.”  Castiel offered.  He looked over at Dean who nodded.

 

“Sure, I’d like to learn it too.”

 

“I’ll bring it over tomorrow afternoon.  After Maya completes her homework, I will help her learn some basic signing.  I’ll leave the program so you can learn it too.”  Castiel said.

 

“Thank you, that will be very much appreciated.”  Dean told him.  Castiel smiled warmly at him.

 

“It’s my pleasure.”

 

 

 

They ate while watching Mouse Hunt, a movie Castiel had clearly never seen before, and he laughed through most of it.  When it was over he went home, promising to be back to see Maya off to school in the morning, and Dean went about cleaning up the leftover pizza.  He thought about how pleasant the evening had been, and he attributed that to the company he’d had.  

 

He got Maya off to bed and sent Evelyn Peters a text asking about her daughter Rose.  She hadn’t called or messaged all evening, and he really didn’t expect to be high on her priority list, but he wanted her to know that he was thinking about her and her daughter during this difficult time.  After that, he called Jo back in California, just to check in and see how she was doing.  Since she was two hours behind, he knew she’d still be awake.  It rang three times before she picked up.

 

“Dean!”  She exclaimed.  He smiled the moment he heard her voice.

 

“Hey, Jo, how have you been?”

 

“I’m good, how are you?  How’s Maya?”

 

“She’s doing much better.  We’re helping one another heal.  She’s been much bubblier lately.  I like seeing her like that.”  He said.

 

“That’s good.”

 

“So, how’s the band?  How’s sunny California?”  He asked.

 

“It’s cold.”  She pouted.  He snorted.  She’d been there too long.  Clearly she’d forgotten how cold South Dakota, her home state could get if she thought California was cold.  “The band is doing ok.  Not as well as if you were still here, but we’re holding our own.”

 

“That’s good.  I miss you guys.  I work so much now that I haven’t really made too many friends here.”  He really missed his friends and getting to hang out.  The spontaneous jam sessions, random get togethers, after parties, they all brought back fond memories but he didn’t think that was a part of his life he wanted to go back to.  He was happy where he was now, though he did miss playing music.

 

“What do you think of me coming to visit?  I haven’t seen Maya in ages.  Mom’s going on a cruise this year with Bobby and I was thinking I’d fly out and spend Christmas with you and Maya.  Sam says he’s spending it with Eileen’s family this year.”  She said.  Dean felt a spark of excitement at her offer to visit.  He’d been crushed when he’d gotten the call from Sam last week telling him he wasn’t coming to visit until January.   He still had to break the news to Maya, and he wasn't looking forward to the look of disappointment on her face. At least Sam was planning to come after the holidays.  This though, it was great news!

 

“Yeah!  We’d love to have you come spend Christmas here!  When do you think you’ll come out?”  

 

“Not sure yet.  We have one last gig on the 18 th , so I think I can be on a flight out to you on the 20 th .  Think you can pick me up at the airport?”  She asked.

 

“Definitely.  Aim for a later flight if possible and I’ll drive up to the airport with Maya.”  He couldn’t wait to go and get her and bring her home for the holidays.  Hopefully she’d stay through the New Year.  It would be nice to have at least one of his old friends here, especially knowing Sam wasn’t coming.  That hurt, but he knew Sam planned to come in January.  This was going to be a good year for all of them, it had to be.

 

 

 

Castiel arrived the following morning looking adorably grumpy, and Dean learned he’d been wearing contacts the night before when he showed up in a pair of black framed glasses that seemed to make his blue eyes stand out even more.  His hair was standing up and he had a sweater pulled tight around his shoulders as he stepped past Dean into the living room.

 

“I have coffee, if you want some.”  Dean offered.

 

“Is Maya awake yet?  This is an ungodly hour.  She doesn’t wake this early, does she?”  Cas’ voice was still rough with sleep and he pulled his sweater tighter around himself.

 

“No, she’s still asleep.  I wasn’t sure if you wanted to watch TV or go back to sleep yourself, so I set up one of the spare bedrooms for you.  Maya has to be at the bus stop at eight sharp.  School starts at 8:35.”  Dean explained as he started for the kitchen.  Castiel followed after him.

 

“I would like to lay down for a bit.  I should have brought my bag.  I’ll have to go grab it later.  I can drive her to school when I head in to work.  The schools are next to one another and there is only a ten minute time difference between when they start.  I can drop her off right in front.”  Castiel stifled a yawn as he leaned against the island.

 

“Well, there’s a Keurig machine, and you’re welcome to as many cups as you want.  I use the refillable pods now that I know how to use them.  There’s cereal in this cabinet, almond milk in the fridge, sorry, we don’t do cow milk, frozen waffles in the freezer, eggs, fruit, whatever you feel like eating.  Maya will have cereal.  Please make sure she eats something.  She tries to get out of it sometimes.”  Dean checked his watch.  It was almost 5:30.  He hated waking up this early but he got his evenings free, and that was a huge plus.  

 

“I’ll make sure she eats.”  Castiel assured him.

 

“Thank you for doing this.  I feel guilty, like I’m taking up your personal time.”  Dean paused in grabbing his coat and looked guiltily at the other man but Castiel waved him off.

 

“You’re not being a bother, so please don’t think that way.  I may not be a morning person, but you’re giving me the chance to go back and lay down so I plan to do exactly that.  You may regret offering me as many cups of coffee as I want though.”

 

Dean chuckled as he slid his coat on.  “It’s worth it to have someone my brother counted as a friend watching Maya.  Thank you so much.  If you have any problems or questions, call or text me.”

 

“Have a good day at work.”  Castiel walked him to the door and after watching Dean walk to the garage, he closed the door and locked it.  He fully intended to get at least an hour and a half of sleep before Maya woke up.

 

 

 

The next few weeks Castiel came each morning, his briefcase slung over one shoulder, a bag with his clothes slung over the other.  He’d begun showing up in his pajamas, which Dean couldn’t help but find even more endearing, and after a few minutes of small talk, he’d leave for work and Castiel would go to sleep in the spare bedroom.  This worked out for most of November and when they got word that Evelyn would not be coming back, Castiel offered to continue watching Maya permanently.  Dean was appreciative of his help, and it felt like he was making a new friend in the process.

 

Most evenings Castiel stayed for dinner at Maya’s insistence.  She would plead with the man to join them, and he didn’t put up very much resistance.  A few days before Thanksgiving, as they sat down around the island to eat the chili that Dean had been simmering since that morning, Castiel decided to ask about their holiday plans.

 

“What are you and Maya doing for Thanksgiving?”

 

“Um, I hadn’t really thought about it.  My brother can’t come out here until January.  I guess maybe I’ll buy a turkey breast, pop it in the crock pot and whip up some mashed potatoes to go with it.  Maybe a pumpkin pie too.”  Dean shrugged.

 

“Well, I was thinking, I spend Thanksgiving with my family each year.  We take turns as to who is going to host dinner and this year it is unfortunately my turn.  Everyone will be coming to my house.  It’s sort of a pot luck type event, and I never know how many people are coming.  There are always people being invited.  I have a large family.  I would like to invite you and Maya.”

 

Maya looked excitedly between the two men, and Dean knew she was hoping he’d say yes.

 

“Uh…sure, that would be nice.  What can I bring?”

 

Castiel smiled warmly, sending those flutters through his stomach yet again.  “I’ll check with my mother and see what she’s bringing.  I’m making two turkeys this year.”

 

“Uncle Dean makes really good pie.”  Maya piped up.  Castiel’s smile grew wider and he looked over at Dean again.

 

“You’re more than welcome to bring pie.  My sister in law Kate usually brings cake, and my other sister in law Sheryl usually brings whatever she has concocted out of pumpkin that year.  Last year it was pumpkin cookies so dry and hard, my brother Luke chipped a tooth on one, the year before it was this horrid pumpkin roll that was probably the most disgusting thing I’ve ever experienced.  I’d much rather have a nice pie.”

 

“I can bring pie.  I’ll make a couple different kinds.  Anyone have any allergies?”  Dean asked.

 

“Well, there are three or four people with gluten sensitivities or allergies. And one with a nut allergy.”  

 

“Ok.  So I can make a cheesecake with a gluten free crust, a cherry pie, an apple pie, and a pumpkin pie.  Sound good?”  Dean thought that would satisfy everyone, and maybe give them something other than Sheryl’s pumpkin nightmare to eat.

 

“That’s perfect.  I can’t wait to try the cherry, that’s my favorite.”  Castiel said.  “If your baking is anything like your cooking, I know it will be wonderful.”

 

Dean was pleased by the compliment.  He had always prided himself on his cooking and baking.

 

“What time is dinner?”

 

“Come to my house at two.  We don’t start eating until four but I wouldn’t mind the help with setting up for dinner.  My family starts arriving around three.”  

 

“That’s fine.  Maya and me, we can definitely come and help.”  Dean said.   

 

“It is very much appreciated.”

 

Dean just had to figure out when he would have the time to go and get the ingredients and actually  _ make _ the pies between now and Thursday.

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

 

Wednesday afternoon, Dean made a quick run to the store on his lunch break to get what he would need for the pies.  He bought a cooler bag and put everything inside it, then tucked it in the back of his truck until he got off work.  When he got back to the house that night, to his surprise, Castiel and Maya had dinner already cooking.  

 

“Sorry, she wanted to try her hand at making you something, and I wasn’t going to let her just putter around in here absently.  So, I let her attempt spaghetti for her first meal.  I felt it was a fairly safe first attempt.”  Castiel explained.  Dean thought it was adorable that his niece was wearing an apron and had her hair pulled back in a braid.  He’d never done more than fix her hair in a ponytail.

 

“I love spaghetti.  Can I help?”

 

“Sure.  I’m making meatballs but I was about to make garlic bread.”  Castiel replied.

 

“Let me go change real quick and I’ll come back and help.”  Dean left the bag with the pie supplies on the island and headed upstairs to change.  After putting on a pair of pair of sweatpants and a tee shirt, he went back downstairs to pitch in. 

 

Maya was proud of her spaghetti, and they enjoyed the meal together.  Dean tried not to think about how nice it felt having Castiel staying for dinner most nights.  It made the evenings less boring, for both of them since Castiel had begun sticking around after Maya would head upstairs to her room.  She’d claim that she wanted time to play with her toys or color but Dean got the impression that the shows he watched and the adult conversations he and Castiel engaged in were probably boring for her.

 

This evening though, there was no escaping to her room.  She had to help make pies, and she was excited to do so.  Castiel even stayed to help, which Dean was thankful for.  It meant he could get all of the pies done at a reasonable time.  Well, that was the plan at least.  Maya ended up making everything go much slower than expected.  She wanted to be the one to measure out every ingredient, and she had to taste test everything.  Dean found it adorable though, and even if they didn’t finish the pies until nearly midnight, it was more fun making them with his niece and Castiel than it would have been to make them alone.

 

 

The following morning he let Maya sleep in while he took a shower and then called his mom.  He felt bad that he wasn’t spending Thanksgiving with her, but he didn’t have enough vacation time built up yet to go back to Kansas, and she had made plans with her boyfriend’s family like she had last year.  He didn’t mind though.  She’d called a few days earlier and said she and Dave were coming for Christmas, and he was glad that he’d get to have his mom and Jo for that.

 

Once Maya woke up, he ushered her into the bathroom to take a shower.  He was sad to see another pretty braid have to get removed.  It was time to get Castiel to teach him how to do one himself.  Once she was done he blow dried her hair, twisted it up in a bun, pinned up the loose strands, and let her pick out what she wanted to wear.  She chose a purple sweater with matching leggings.  Castiel hadn’t said they needed to dress up, but he did anyway, choosing a green button down and black dress pants.  He slid a navy blue and green sweater over the shirt and at ten to two, after bundling up the pies and slipping Maya’s coat on, they walked over to Castiel’s.

 

They were greeted by the delicious smell of turkey cooking and the sight of Castiel in a worn band tee and loose fitting jeans.  Suddenly Dean felt sorely overdressed.

 

“Did I dress too nice?  Should I go back and change?”  He was a half step away from just turning and heading home to do exactly that, except Castiel placed a hand on his arm and pulled him into the house before he could.

 

“No, you look great, and I’ll change before my family gets here.  I didn’t want to be working with raw turkey in my dress clothes.”

 

“Oh, ok.”  That made Dean feel better.  “Where should I put these?  The cheesecake should be put in the fridge.”

 

Castiel led him into the kitchen while Maya plopped down on the sofa and picked up the remote.  Dean had learned that she’d been to his house many times before and he figured she knew her way around his cable remote.

 

After storing the pies, the two men got busy setting the dining room table.  Castiel set the kitchen table up, adding the leaf in the middle to expand it for the kids that would be coming.  He’d stocked up on paper plates and earth friendly, biodegradable utensils, and soon Dean learned why he’d gone that route instead of just putting out real plates and silverware.  Once they had brought tea, juice, and bottles of soda to the buffet that sat against the far dining room wall, Castiel went to go and change.  

 

The doorbell rang before he had returned, so Dean went to answer.  There was a couple standing there, their arms laden down with bags, and two very bored looking teenage kids with their faces buried in their phones.  The man arched one eyebrow when his eyes landed on Dean.  It was clear he was related to Castiel.  He had the same good looks, with the dark hair and blue eyes.

 

“Hello, I don’t think we’ve met before, I’m Mike.  Castiel is my brother.”

 

“I’m Dean, Cas is my neighbor.  I live two doors down with my niece Maya.”  He pointed at his niece who was still sitting on the couch watching cartoons.

 

“Oh, right, I think he said he was inviting you.  This is my wife Kate and my kids Shea and Matt.”  Mike introduced.

 

“It’s nice to meet you.”  Dean took several of the bags from them and they headed into the kitchen.

 

“Where’s Castiel?”  Kate asked.

 

“He went to change.”

 

“Here I am.”  Castiel walked into the kitchen, smiling and hugging his sister in law before doing the same with his brother.  

 

“What did you bring this year?”  Castiel began sorting through the bags, organizing and passing things over to Dean, like the cake that Kate had made that he asked him to place on the far counter with the pies, and the beer to be placed in the fridge.  Everything else was brought into the dining room to be set out on the buffet.  The next time the bell rang, one of Mike’s kids got the door, and more relatives were filing in.  By the time everyone had arrived, it was after four, and people were eating in shifts because there weren’t enough chairs at either table.  

 

 

Dean was shocked to learn that Castiel was the youngest boy in a family of nine children, most of which had children.  He was even a great uncle to a three month old little boy.  What he hadn’t expected was to learn that the handsome school teacher was an identical twin.  His brother Jimmy had the same stunning blue eyes and dark hair but he was much milder in personality, and quite religious.  He was married to a very pleasant woman named Amelia and had a teenage daughter named Claire that Castiel was particularly close with.  Dean assumed that was because they were twins.  

 

Castiel’s parents were pleasant and friendly, and much like his own family had done for years, they parked themselves in front of the television the moment they were done eating and began watching football.  Dean proceeded to help with the cleanup, dragging the garbage can on wheels around the dining room table and sweeping all of the used plates into it.  One of Castiel’s brothers came in with storage containers, most likely sent by his youngest brother to store the leftover turkey, and he watched Dean clean for a moment before he spoke up.

 

“Are you dating my brother?”

 

Dean almost dropped the plate he’d been about to throw out and looked up in surprise.

 

“What?  No, I’m not.”

 

“Oh.  I thought maybe you were.  It’s been ages since he invited anyone to a holiday dinner.”  The man, Dean was pretty sure this brother was Gabe and not Bart, took the lid off the turkey closest to him.  There wasn’t a whole lot to salvage on it, but he was going to try anyway.

 

“He’s been watching my niece before and after school for me, and sometimes we have dinner together.  That way he doesn’t have to watch Maya and then come back and cook.  It’s my way of saying thank you.”  Dean explained as he tossed more plates.

 

“You live in the Winchester house, right?”  Gabe asked.

 

“Right.  I’m Dean Winchester.  Adam was my brother.”  

 

Gabe’s expression was sympathetic and he lowered the knife he was using to cut the meat.  “I was very sorry to hear about your brother.  I knew him too.  Not well, mind you, but once or twice he joined Cassie and me for drinks and a game of pool.  He was a good kid, had his head on straight and I liked him.  How is Maya doing?”

 

Dean took a deep breath and let it out slowly.  Everyone asked this question.  Thankfully it was starting to get easier to answer.

 

“She is doing better.  She’s in therapy and it’s helping, plus I spend as much time with her as possible.  Yesterday, Cas taught her how to make spaghetti, and you’d have thought she had learned how to crème Brule, she was so proud of herself.  He showed her how to make meatballs too.  Now she wants to make more dishes.  She’s really growing up too fast.  I see it like she’s healing, and that’s what’s important.  If she wants to do these sorts of things, I want to encourage them.”

 

“Cas loves kids, in case his career choice wasn’t a dead giveaway, but seriously, he’s been around kids his entire life.  He’s the youngest, and there’s almost 18 years between him and our eldest sister Naomi.  By the time Cassie was ready to start kindergarten, he was already an uncle.  He grew up with his nephew George.  Then a few years later Lacey came along.  Slowly the rest of us all grew up and started getting married and having kids.  This wasn’t even all of the grandkids that came today, or the great grandkids.  There are currently 27 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren.  George has three kids, Lacey has two and Nina, that’s Rafe’s daughter, she has a baby boy, three months old.  That’s the one that’s here tonight.  We’re rarely ever all in the same place at the same time anymore.  Heck, Naomi, Rachel, and Rafe aren’t even here.  They live too far away and couldn’t get the time off work.  Our family is huge.”  Gabe cut off the rest of what he felt was salvageable from that bird before moving on to the next one.

 

“That’s…wow.  I just had my two brothers, Sam and Adam.  Sam’s my full brother, and Adam was our half-brother from our dad’s second marriage.  Sam’s still back in California.  Our dad and stepmom passed away.  My mom is still alive and lives in Kansas.  Neither Sam nor I have kids, only Adam did.  I’m glad though, that he did.  I adore Maya.”  Dean couldn’t imagine a world without his precious niece in it.

 

“The size of the family doesn’t matter, it’s knowing that you’re loved and valued that is most important.  That goes not only for Maya, but for you as well.  Don’t forget that.”  Gabe pulled the only remaining leg off the bird and dropped it into one of the containers just as Castiel walked in the room.  He looked frazzled but he was smiling.

 

“So, you survived a Novak Thanksgiving.  Was it awful?”

 

“No, not at all.  I’ve enjoyed myself.  This has been really nice.  Way better than sitting at home watching movies with just Maya and me.  Thank you for inviting us.”  Dean told him.  Castiel smiled wider.

 

“Good, I’m so happy to hear that.  We’re letting our food digest just a bit longer while we finish the cleanup, and then we’re going to bring out the desserts.  Sheryl brought pumpkin macaroons this year.”  His smile morphed into a grimace and Gabe made a gagging motion with his finger in his mouth.  Dean frowned.

 

“Those sound gross.”

 

“Shh, don’t let her hear you say that.”  Gabe whispered.

 

“I won’t.  I’ll try one, just to be nice.”

 

“You’ll regret that.”  Castiel warned.

 

“Do you have apple cider?”  Dean asked.  Castiel nodded.

 

“I do, and it’s warm.  I’ll even add a cinnamon stick.”

 

Dean smiled.  It had been ages since he’d had warm apple cider.   “Good, have some ready because I may need to wash the taste out of my mouth.  And be glad she didn’t make pumpkin fruit cake.”

 

Castiel looked at his brother in horror to find that Gabe had a matching expression.

 

“I think he just jinxed us!”  Gabe cried.

 

When the desserts finally came out, everyone raved over Dean’s pies.  They went much too fast and he wished he’d made two of each one.  Thankfully he wasn’t the only one to bring cheesecake or pumpkin pie.  Sheryl was excitedly passing out her macaroons, oblivious to everyone’s wary expressions as they reluctantly accepted one and as Dean took his, Castiel set a mug of hot apple cider down in front of him.  He bit into the cookie and tried his hardest not to make a face, unlike Jimmy’s daughter Claire who gagged and spit it out in a napkin, causing her father to blush.  It definitely wasn’t the most horrible thing he’d ever eaten, and the worse thing about it was that it lacked sugar.  He wondered if Sheryl would be opposed to him showing her the right way to make them.  

 

 

Maya had fun playing with the other kids her age and when her uncle told her it was time to leave, she whined and pouted.  Unfortunately though, he had work the next day, even if she was off school.  Castiel had offered to keep her at his place the next day, so after waking a cranky eight year old up at 4:30, he carried her over to his handsome, equally cranky neighbor’s house and handed her over before heading in to work.  He was looking forward to the weekend and sleeping in.

 


	5. Chapter 5

 

Charlie had a rhythm going.  She was managing to stay ahead of the letters that kept pouring in now that Chuck had her forwarding on the ones that weren’t for this area.  Mornings were for responding to emails while afternoons and evenings were for answering actual mail.  She had been getting to know the postal staff and was making friends.  It was nice working here.  Everyone was friendly and made her feel at home.  Different people would stop by throughout the day to chat, and she loved that.  Usually in the late afternoons, after returning from his run, Dean would stop by.  Lately he’d been talking an awful lot about his neighbor who had been watching his niece for him while he was at work.  She was a pretty observant person and she could tell when someone was interested in another person, even without meeting the one they were interested in.  Plus there were the two letters she had already received from one “Maya Winchester” that pretty much spelled it out for her.

 

Maya’s first letter to Santa had pulled at her heart more than most of the other letters had, because the little girl hadn’t asked for anything for herself.  Instead, she’d asked for something rather intangible for her Uncle Dean.  She’d asked for a Christmas Miracle.  Charlie had actually teared up as she’d read the little girl’s letter, and she’d brought it home for her wife Gilda to read.  She’d quickly realized this was Dean’s niece Maya that had written the letter.  There weren’t  _ that _ many people, and there was only one Maya Winchester as well as only one Dean Winchester.  She hadn’t mentioned the letter to Dean.  He would have probably been embarrassed, and even a bit humiliated by that first letter, but she found it touching, and incredibly empathetic for someone so young.  Even now, though she had long since written back to Maya, she pulled the letter out of her desk and read it again.  

 

_ Dear Santa, _

 

_ Mrs. Murphy says we have to write to you and tell you something that we want or that we wish for, but I don’t want anything for me.  I want you to do something for my Uncle Dean.  See, he’s been real sad.  He thinks I don’t see it but I do.  My daddy died this year and my heart broke into a million zillion pieces, but Uncle Dean loves me tons and he’s helping me put it back together.  He does all kinds of nice things like taking me to the park and reading me stories at bedtime.  When I have bad dreams or I can’t sleep he even sings to me.  We have lots of fun together and he always tells me he loves me.  I love him SOOOO much.  I’m not so sad anymore now that he’s here and I think my daddy would be happy about that.  But I know Uncle Dean is sad cause he doesn’t have someone to love him too.  Not like me, cause I love him tons.  I mean like a special someone to love him.  I heard daddy say once that Uncle Dean dates boys.  I don’t know if he dates girls too.  I guess what I wish for this Christmas more than anything is for you to send someone for my uncle, so he can be happy again.  I like when he smiles and I want him to have someone he can watch his shows with and make pies for besides me.  I would like to have two uncles to love me.  Please Santa?  That’s what I want for Christmas.  Make my Uncle Dean happy because he’s the bestest uncle in the whole wide world! _

 

_ Love, Maya Winchester _

 

Charlie stroked her thumb gently over the little girl’s name as she had done a dozen times before and folded the letter up again.  She tucked it back in her drawer.  Of all the things children had asked for, toys, puppies, bikes, clothes, no one had asked for love for someone else.  It made this letter that much more special.

 

She’d written back to Maya, her response reaching the little girl at her elementary school since that’s where all correspondences were being handled through, though it had taken her the better part of a week to find just the right wording so she didn’t ruin the child’s hope.  How do you tell a child that of all the things Santa can do, bringing true love to someone is just  _ not _ one of those things?  Children’s emotions were fragile, and she had asked for such a simple thing.

 

In the end she had told Maya that her uncle was special, and that when the time was right, someone equally as special would come into his life, and that person would make him smile.  They would fill his heart with joy and love like no one else ever had, and she would be able to see it in the way that they looked at one another.  When they did, she would know that her Christmas Wish had come true.  She prayed she wasn’t getting the child’s hopes up only to have them get shattered later on.

 

Then the second letter had arrived from Maya, just after Thanksgiving.  The little girl had sounded so excited and happy, and Charlie found herself wondering what on earth was going on in the Winchester house.  She saw Dean pretty much every day, but he’d never mentioned that he was seeing anyone.  Maya’s letter led her to believe otherwise though.

 

_ Dear Santa, _

 

_ Thank you!  My wish has come true!  Uncle Dean is so happy and he smiles all the time now!  You said I’d know because I’d see it in the way they look at each other, and I do!  They look at each other like the people on TV do when they’re in love, so they must be in love!  I haven’t seen them kiss yet but that’s ok cause kissing is gross and I don’t want to see anyone kiss.  I just want Uncle Dean to keep being happy and for him to be in love.  Maybe they’ll get married and we can all live here together!  That would make me really happy too!  This is going to be the best Christmas ever! _

 

_ Love, Maya Winchester _

 

Unfortunately Maya was so vague in her letter that Charlie had nothing to go on as to who this mystery person was that was making her uncle so happy, so she took it upon herself to do some snooping on her own.  The first step to that was getting herself invited to Dean’s house for dinner the following Saturday.

 

 

“Maya, please set the table.”  Dean called up the stairs.  She came bouncing down and into the kitchen, peeking over his arm to see what he was doing.

 

“You’re not cooking?”

 

“I ordered Japanese food for dinner tonight, and some of it is vegan because our guests are vegan.”  He replied.

 

“What’s vegan?”

 

“It means they don’t eat meat or anything that comes from an animal, so no milk, cheese, eggs, nothing like that.”  He handed her a stack of plates and she carried them to the island.

 

“I like meat.”  She said.  “And fish.”

 

“Me too.”  He agreed.

 

“Is Castiel coming to dinner?”  

 

Dean glanced at her before sorting through another container of sushi.  “Uh, no.  Just Charlie and her wife Gilda.”

 

“Charlie’s a girl?”

 

“Yep.  You’ll like her, she has red hair like you, but hers is like fire.”

 

“That sounds cool.”  Maya grinned as she came back to get the chopsticks he handed her.  She set those out and the doorbell rang.

 

“I’ll get it!”  She raced to get the door as Dean started moving the food to the island.

 

“Oh, am I interrupting?”  Castiel asked as he walked into the kitchen.

 

“No, not at all.  I have a friend from work and her wife coming over for dinner.  You’re welcome to stay though.”  Dean wiped his hands on his pants before pointing at the food.  “I probably bought too much anyway.  They’re vegan and I think I bought too much that has fish in it.”

 

“I really don’t want to impose.”  Castiel eyed the table but didn’t get a chance to bow out before the doorbell was ringing again.  Maya opened the door a second time.  Charlie walked in with her wife and Dean gave her a quick hug before shaking Gilda’s hand.  

 

“Hi, I’m Charlie, I work at the post office with Dean.”  She offered Cas her hand.  He shook it and then Gilda’s.

 

“I’m Castiel, I live two doors down.  I watch Maya sometimes.”

 

“Cas eats dinner with us and watches movies with us.  He taught me how to make spaghetti.”  Maya said proudly.”

 

He smiled at her fondly.  “You did an amazing job.”

 

“Will you be joining us?”  Gilda asked.

 

“I hadn’t realized Dean was having company this evening.  I was going to see if he wanted to watch a movie…”  Castiel looked ready to run again until Charlie slipped her arm through his and led him towards the island.

 

“Nonsense, we can sit and talk and get to know one another.  You’re the teacher Dean’s always talking about, right?”

 

Castiel glanced over at Dean in time to see his cheeks turning pink.

 

“I teach 5 th and 6 th grade math and science, yes.”

 

“Oh, how wonderful!  You’re shaping young minds!”  She exclaimed.

 

Castiel ended up at the island, seated next to Dean and across from Charlie and Gilda.  Maya sat on the end, happily eating and watching the adults as they talked about anything and everything that came to mind.  As soon as dinner was over, Maya escaped to her room, leaving the four adults to clean up and talk some more.

 

“Excuse me just a minute, I need to make sure Maya gets into bed.  I’ll be back down in a few minutes.”  Dean politely excused himself, glancing one last time at Castiel before heading for the stairs.  The moment he was gone, Charlie rounded on the teacher.

 

“Ok, I only have a few minutes before he’s back.  I’m acting as Santa this year at the post office, but I couldn’t say that in front of Maya.  Her letter came in through my department, and it about broke my damn heart when I got it last month.  Came in the beginning of November.”  She dug into her messenger bag and pulled it out, passing it over to him.  “Read that.  Do you see Dean that way?”

 

He opened the letter and read it quickly.  His eyes widened and he blinked back tears that threatened to spill.

 

“Oh, that sweet child…”

 

“That’s what I said too.”  Gilda agreed.

 

“I don’t see Dean as sad at all.  He’s…”  He thought for a long moment.  “I guess I’d say, happy.  Whenever I see him he’d in a good mood, always talkative, smiling, joking.  He’s very pleasant to be around.”

 

Gilda and Charlie shared a knowing look before Charlie pulled the second letter out of her bag.  She took back the first letter but before handing him the second one, she looked him in the eye.

 

“You’re interested in him, aren’t you.”

 

His cheeks tinged red and he looked away in embarrassment.  “Is it that obvious?”

 

“To an eight year old girl, yes.  Now, I happen to know a little something about Dean from the short time I’ve known him.  He’s not straight.  Like, at all.  And the way he talks about you, I know he’s interested in you too.  Now, that being said, this was Maya’s second letter to Santa.”  She handed the letter over and he quickly read it.  

 

“She…”  He swallowed hard before looking up at her, his blue eyes wide with surprise.  “She thinks…we’re in love?”

 

“To an eight year old?  Yes.  Her Christmas wish was for her uncle to fall in love and find someone he could be happy with.  She believes that someone is you.”  Gilda said.  Castiel didn’t know what to say to that.  Footsteps on the stairs made them all jump and Charlie snatched the letter from his hands.  She stuffed it back in her bag and leaned casually on the island before Dean appeared in the kitchen.  

 

“Miss me?”  He joked.  Charlie snickered and Gilda smiled.  Castiel was still trying to calm his racing heart down.

 

“Why don’t we play a game?  Do you play video games Cas?”  Charlie asked.

 

“Y-yes, I do, actually.”  He replied, finally getting control of himself.

 

“Good, let’s go play something.  We’ll keep the volume turned down so we don’t bother Maya.”  She stood up and headed into the living room.  Gilda and Dean followed.

 

“You coming, Cas?”  Dean asked, stopping halfway to look back at him.

 

“Oh, yes, of course.  This will be fun.”  He stood up and followed after them.  His heart was back to trying to beat its way out of his chest.  Was Maya seeing something he wasn’t aware of?

 


	6. Chapter 6

 

As the month of December went on, Castiel tried to work up the nerve to actually ask Dean on a date.  Then winter break was around the corner.  He decided to finally do it the evening of the 20 th , after Maya had been tucked into bed for the night and they were relaxing, watching a movie together.  Somehow this had become a routine for them, and it was one he was very happy with.  It beat spending his time at home alone with only his cats for company.  They were watching a silly Christmas romance movie that neither would admit to liking if anyone asked them later, and he felt that this was his chance.  He took a deep, steadying breath and shifted in his seat so that he was facing Dean more.

 

“Dean?”

 

Dean had slumped down some and at hearing his name, he sat up, turning to look at him.

 

“Yeah?”

 

“I was wondering something.”

 

Dean was watching him, his green eyes bright and curious.  He couldn’t help but observe every detail.  The man was absolutely beautiful, from the long lashes that framed his dark green eyes to the freckles that were scattered across his nose and cheeks, to his full lips.  He was breathtaking.

 

“What’s on your mind, Cas?”

 

“Would you like to go out?  O-on a date.  W-with me.”  Castiel cringed internally, wishing he’d been gifted with the natural ability to smooth talk like just about any of his brothers, or heck, even his sisters.  He was awful at asking people out, always had been.  Dean sat up even more, leaning towards him and smiling.  It was the kind of smile that lit up his face, reaching his eyes and making him almost glow from within.

 

“I would love to.  When?”

 

“Is tomorrow too soon?”  

 

“I have to pick someone up at the airport tomorrow, but hey, she’ll babysit.  We can go out the next night though.”  Dean said.

 

“Alright, that would be nice.  I’ll find somewhere nice where we can have dinner and see if I can get us reservations.”  

 

“Sounds good.”  Dean licked his lips slowly, thoughtfully, before patting the seat right beside him.  “Do you want to sit over here?”

 

Castiel smiled and nodded before sliding across the couch and curling up against Dean’s side. When Dean tilted his chin up so he could press a kiss to his lips, he didn’t resist.  It was wonderful, and it felt incredibly long overdue.  Maya’s letter was right, her uncle was happy, but so was he.

 

 

Jo arrived the next night with presents, but there was no tree to put them under.  Since Dean still had to work, Castiel got a break while she was in town and she recruited Maya in helping her drag the tree and boxes of decorations up from the basement.  When Dean got home from work the evening of the 22 nd , the tree was standing in a corner by the window, fully decorated and lit up, with piles of presents already underneath it.  He spent a few minutes rocking out with his girls to Christmas music before heading upstairs to get ready for his date.  

 

After his shower they came to help him select his clothes.  Maya chose a dark blue dress shirt while Jo selected a black waistcoat and black tie.  He selected black dress pants and once he was dressed, he modeled for them.  Maya jumped up and down excitedly.

 

“He’s going to kiss you!  You’re so beautiful!”

 

Dean blushed at the compliment and swept her up in his arms.  “Thank you, princess, but I will never be as beautiful as you.”

 

She giggled when he tickled her and squirmed until he put her down.  

 

“You look really good.  He’s going to go crazy for you, if he hasn’t already.”  Jo said as she straightened his tie.

 

“I think he maybe already is crazy about me.  I know I am about him.  He’s freaking great.  I can’t wait for you to get to know him.  God, wait til you  _ see _ him!  He’s gorgeous!”  Dean exclaimed.

 

The doorbell rang and Maya shot out of the room.

 

“I’ll get it!”  She screamed.

 

“Maya likes him?”  She asked.

 

“She loves him.”  

 

Jo smiled.  “That’s good.  That’s really important.”

 

“I know.”  He took a deep breath and offered his arm.  “Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

 

He led her downstairs and into the living room where Castiel was waiting.  The man looked even more stunning than usual in a charcoal gray sweater over a white shirt and black pants.  A happy smile lit up his face the moment his eyes landed on Dean.  When he noticed Jo, it became more reserved, almost shy.

 

“Hello, you must be Jo.  I’m Castiel.”

 

“I am.  It’s nice to meet you, Dean speaks quite fondly of you.”

 

“He speaks quite fondly of you as well.”  Castiel said.

 

“I hope you enjoy your evening out.  Maya and I are going to enjoy hot chocolate, wrapping some more presents, and watching It’s a Wonderful Life before she heads up to bed.  You boys go have fun and don’t worry about us.”  She grabbed Dean’s wool coat that he’d designated for this date and thrust it at him as she ushered them towards the door.

 

“Alright, I can take a hint, you want to wrap my presents.  We’ll go.  If you have any problems at all, just call me.”  Dean slipped his coat on and then they left.  Jo leaned back against the door and looked at Maya.

 

“They’re in love, aren’t they?”

 

“So in love!”  The little girl exclaimed.

 

“Thought so.  Let’s make double hot chocolate.  With extra marshmallows.”  Jo decided.

 

“Double hot chocolate?”  Maya asked as she followed her to the kitchen.

 

“Well, yeah.  That’s where you add two packets to a mug instead of one.  Didn’t your uncle ever teach you that?”

 

Maya shook her head and Jo feigned a gasp of shock that got the little girl giggling again.

 

“We’re about to remedy that right now, missy.  You’re in for a treat!  Your uncle might just box my ears for this one though!”

 

 

“So where are we going?”  Dean asked as they walked out to Castiel’s car and got in.

 

“It would seem everyone in town had the same idea I did, about a romantic dinner, but I managed to get us a reservation at a steakhouse for seven thirty.  I thought that would be alright since I know you like burgers and steak already, you’ve made them several times at home.”  

 

“I love steak.”  Dean settled into the passenger seat and watched their neighborhood disappear behind them as they drove towards the restaurant.  The city was beautiful, all done up in lights, a giant Christmas tree sitting in the downtown plaza with carolers singing in front of it when they passed by.  It was nicer than anything he’d have seen back in California.

 

“You know, Maya never brought Jenny up again after that initial conversation.  Did she end up with a girlfriend after all?”  Castiel asked, interrupting his thoughts.  He turned to him, smiling and shaking his head.

 

“No, Jenny developed a crush on Javier Cruz and asked him out like a day later.  Maya didn’t care.  There’s a boy in her class, Jacob something or the other, and I know she thinks he’s cute, but she isn’t ready for a boyfriend or a girlfriend.  I know  _ I’m _ not ready for her to have one, not at eight!”

 

Castiel laughed.  “No, I wouldn’t be either.”  He paused for a moment.  “So, you were in the band with Jo?  Is that how you knew her?”

 

“No, actually her stepdad and my dad were best friends.  We grew up together.  She’s a year younger than my brother Sam and used to have this major crush on him when we were kids.  Then my parents split and my dad moved here.  Her parents were still married at the time, but then her dad died.  My dad’s best friend still came around cause he was like an uncle to us, and Ellen, that’s Jo’s mom, she would babysit for us when my mom worked, and I guess Bobby sort of fell in love with her.  They got married when I was 16.  Jo was like, 11 at that point.  Two years later, they moved to South Dakota where Bobby opened his own junk yard and auto shop, and Ellen opened up a saloon.  When Sam left for college, I followed him.  I had gone to community college, earned an associates in English but I didn’t know what to do with it, so I decided to just go to California with him.  I got a job working in an auto shop during the day and at night I played guitar in some bars.  I met some people, eventually formed a band, and then out of the blue Jo calls me one day, says she’s in L.A.  I told her she could come stay with me.  Turned out she could play like three different instruments and she could sing, so she joined the band.  We really began to get noticed before she even get out there, but it just got better once she did.  We played together for a good ten years.  Maybe we weren’t Metallica or Led Zeppelin big, but we’re pretty well known on the west coast.”

 

“Sounds like she’s family.”  Castiel said, a soft smile gracing his lips.  Dean smiled back.

 

“She is.  She’s like a sister to me.”

 

 

The steakhouse was nice, decked out in Christmas décor with twinkling lights adorning every table, and the ambiance was very romantic.  They sat across from one another talking just as they always did.  Being with Castiel was very comfortable.  As they ate, he posed a question that had been niggling at the back of his mind for a while now, and he hoped he was just being a bit too paranoid.

 

“Do you think it’s going to be awkward having my mom here for Christmas?  With Maya and all?”

 

Castiel finished chewing his piece of steak, swallowing it and tilting his head in confusion.  “Why would it be?”

 

“Well, she’s not Maya’s grandmother.  Kate was.  My parents split because my dad was cheating.  They tried to keep it from us when we were kids, but I confronted my dad years later, as an adult, and I found out the truth.  He and my mom had been having problems in their marriage for a long time when he met Kate.  They fell in love, and he wanted to be with her.  He was the one that filed for divorce, though my mom says it was her.  She told us he abandoned us.  I was bitter for a long time over it, but I know my mom, and I grew up knowing how my dad and Kate were.  He had joint custody, she fought him on it.  It’s why he and Kate seemed to get married so fast after he moved out here, and why my mom was so bitter over it.  She had mixed feelings over me moving out here to take care of Maya.  In her mind, Maya wasn’t my responsibility.  I think that’s why she didn’t come out here for Thanksgiving.  I hope this doesn’t drive a further wedge between us.”  Dean poked at his baked potato as the worry gnawed at his gut.  In truth, by the time he’d reached adulthood, he’d been closer with his dad and Kate than he had been with his mother.  It was why he’d followed Sam out to California instead of staying in Kansas with her.

 

“Anyone that would begrudge a child her family, regardless of what circumstances led to that child’s existence, that person doesn’t need to be in your home, and you have every right to ask her to leave if you feel that she may cause harm to Maya’s mental health.  My recommendation is if you have this sort of concern, you have it for a valid reason.  Don’t leave Maya alone with her.  I will keep Maya with me in the event that Jo cannot watch her, or that she has to return to California.  Whatever it takes to ease your mind and keep Maya safe, ok?”  Castiel reached across the table to take his hand and Dean felt the tension that had been squeezing tight around his chest finally beginning to relax.

 

“Thank you, that means a lot.”

 

“When is she arriving?”

 

“Her boyfriend is driving, and they’re coming in tomorrow afternoon.”  Dean replied.

 

“Well, do you have an extra bedroom for them?”

 

Dean frowned.  The master bedroom had been Adam’s room and he’d left it untouched since his brother died.  He’d taken one of the spare bedrooms, and Jo had the other spare room.  Currently the only empty bedroom was the master, and he was  _ not _ putting his mother and her boyfriend up in there.

 

“No, not really.  Just Adam’s room, and I don’t want them in there.”

 

“Well, why don’t you talk to Maya about that in the morning?  I’m sure Adam wouldn’t want that room to go unused forever.  Let her pick out her favorite things to keep and move into her own room, then move your own things into it.  Let your mother sleep in your current bedroom.  I’ll come early in the morning and move everything into the master.  Jo can help me, and that will get the room ready for when they arrive.  When you get home, I’ll help you sort and organize.  I knew Adam.  He was a loving and generous man.  He’d want his clothing and other items to go to those in need, and this is the perfect time of year to give to those less fortunate.  There are so many people that could use warm clothing.  I’m not forcing you, by any means.  You could simply put things in boxes, store it, and when your mother leaves, move back into the spare bedroom if that makes you more comfortable.  But it will help Maya as well to move on.”

 

Dean sighed.  He was right, even his therapist had been nudging him in this direction.  They needed closure, to move on, and this really was the perfect time of year to help those less fortunate.

 

“You’re right.  You don’t mind boxing his stuff up?  I can’t take off work, I don’t have enough time built up yet.”

 

“I don’t mind at all.  I’m off for winter break and I  _ do _ have the time.”  Castiel gave his hand a squeeze before returning to eating his food.  “How long is your mother staying for?”

 

“I don’t know, she hasn’t said.  I don’t think it will be long though, she has work to get back to, so does her boyfriend Dave.  I haven’t actually met him, so I have no clue what he’s even like.  Hopefully he’s not a dick.  He better not be homophobic.”

 

“She would tell him, wouldn’t she?”  Castiel hoped she would.  His own parents would have.

 

“She usually does, but since I barely see her anymore, I can’t say.  I also didn’t tell her I was seeing anyone, so she’s in for a surprise.”  Dean chuckled.  

 

“Well, I could care less what their opinion of me is, as long as you and Maya are not hurt.”

 

Dean smiled.  He felt lucky to have had this man come into his life.

 


	7. Chapter 7

Their evening was one of the most pleasant Dean had experienced in a very long time and they spent a long time kissing in the car before they went to their respective homes.  Jo was still awake, waiting up for him, but more likely for the juicy details of his date, and she was on him the moment he walked through the door.

 

“Well?  Was it romantic?”

 

He couldn’t hide his grin as he took his coat off and hung it in the closet.

 

“It was very romantic.  He took me to a steakhouse and we enjoyed a very nice dinner.  I can’t remember the last time I went on an actual date like that.”

 

“He seems really nice, not like the jerks you dated back in Cali.  You think maybe he’s long term material?”  She asked as they sat down together on the couch.

 

“Definitely.  I think maybe it feels like we’ve been dating all along, but just didn’t realize it.  He makes me happy.”  He unbuttoned his waistcoat and looked over at the tree. “Maya’s asleep?”

 

“Yep.  Crashed about an hour ago.”

 

“Do you think there’s going to be a problem having my mom here with Maya?  I was talking to Cas about that.  He thinks I shouldn’t leave her alone with Maya while she’s here.”  He turned back to Jo in time to see the serious expression on her face.  She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

 

“Is it cause she didn’t want you to come take custody of Maya?  That was pretty messed up.  Who else was going to do it?  She’s your niece.  I can’t fathom why she even said that to you.”

 

Dean shook his head.  “I don’t know.  I’m sort of wary that she’ll say something negative to hurt Maya, but maybe I’m just being paranoid.  I can’t take off work though.  I only get Christmas day off.”

 

“Don’t worry, I’ll be here until after the New Year.  The band is taking a break.  We’re all feeling overworked and we need some time with our families.  After here, I’m going home to visit my mom and Bobby for a week, then I’m going back to Cali.”  She said.  “I won’t let her say or do anything spiteful to hurt Maya, she’s a sweet kid and doesn’t deserve it.”

 

“Cas is coming over tomorrow morning to help clear out the master bedroom.  I’m, uh, moving in there.  I’ll have to call Maya from work to talk to her about it, but I do  _ not _ want my mother and Dave staying in there, so my stuff needs to be brought from my room into the master, and Adam’s stuff needs to be packed up so it can be donated, but not until Maya gets to go through all of it so she can choose what she wants to keep.  His clothes and stuff all gets boxed up though.  We’re taking it to a shelter.  My mom should be here tomorrow afternoon, or maybe tomorrow evening.  I’m hoping she doesn’t get here until after I get home from work.”  He said.

 

“I hope not either.  I like Mary, but I don’t relish being the one here to receive her alone.”  Jo frowned.  “Maybe Maya can go over to Cas’ house if you’re not home by the time they get here.”

 

“That’s a good idea.  I’ll call him in the morning and ask him.”  He much preferred that.

 

Dean missed seeing Cas’ face in the morning, and the house was quiet as he left.  By eight though, he had received a series of texts from both Jo and Castiel, updates on the progress that came with packing up the two rooms, and Castiel had informed him that Gabe had come over to help since he had connections with a local homeless shelter that could greatly benefit from anything they wanted to donate.  Dean spoke to Maya about what they were doing and she was ok with the change.  Jo later informed him that she went into the master bedroom and took every picture in there as well as all of the items on the dresser and some things from the nightstand.  No one stopped her as they knew the items all held special meaning for her.  Dean wanted to put up a special shelf for Maya in her room later to display the pictures, and maybe another one over her bed for the items she had taken as well.  

 

The day dragged on and whenever he had a chance, he texted back and forth with them.  His mother and Dave had not shown up yet, thank God, and Castiel had gotten a chicken started in the crock pot around one.  Once the spare bedroom was empty of all of Dean’s things, Jo hurried to get it vacuumed and changed the sheets on the bed while Castiel and Gabe began putting Dean’s things away in the master bedroom.  Castiel didn’t want him stressing out, looking for his things over the next few weeks as he tried to find places for everything, so they saved him the hassle.  Once it was all put away, he took pictures and sent them to Dean.  It took a load off his shoulders knowing that was one less thing he’d have to worry about doing in the coming weeks.  He had enough on his plate.

 

A half hour before Dean got home from work, Mary and Dave arrived.  Jo was busy making cheesy mashed potatoes in the kitchen when the doorbell rang.  Her stomach squeezed tight as she turned the burner off and went to answer it.  Forcing a smile on her face, she opened the door.

 

“Mary, hey!”  She greeted the other woman.  Mary’s expression morphed into one of surprise seeing her there instead of her son.

 

“Jo!  I didn’t expect to see you!  Hello, honey!”  She hugged Jo tight and kissed her cheek.  “How have you been?  What brings you out here to South Dakota?”

 

“Oh, mom and dad took a cruise and won’t be back until after the New Year, and Sam’s spending Christmas with Eileen’s family, so I thought I’d come spend some time with the rest of my family.”  Jo replied.

 

“Well, it’s good to see you, sweetheart, you look wonderful.  How is California treating you?”  Mary asked as she and Dave stepped into the house.

 

“It’s great.  I mean, I miss South Dakota, sort of.  California’s not exactly as fun as it used to be, and it’s really expensive.”  Jo closed the door behind them.  She looked at Dave standing there, looking all awkward so she offered him her hand.  “You must be the boyfriend.  I think I heard your name is Dave?”

 

He smiled and nodded.  “That’s right.  It’s nice to meet you.  Are you Dean’s girlfriend?”

 

“Me?  Ha!  No.  I’m more like his sister.  Our families were always close and we grew up together.”  Jo said.  “I was in the band with him back in California.  It was really his band, I joined later.”

 

“I’ve heard their music, it’s really good.”  Dave said.  “I can see why you guys are as popular as you are out there.”

 

“It’s not the same as it was when Dean was with us, but really, most of the guys are over 40 now and thinking of leaving anyway.  They want to settle down, and two are thinking of leaving Cali altogether.  I’ll admit, I’m thinking about it too.  It’s just so expensive.  If the band does break up, I won’t be able to afford my apartment anymore.  Mom’s been asking me to come home and take over the bar.  She wants to retire.  I’m thinking about it.”  Jo admitted.

 

“It would be a good career change.  You’d have a steady income.  The Roadhouse has always done very well.”  Mary said.

 

“It really has.”  Jo agreed.  Mary took a look around, her eyes lingering on the Christmas tree for a long time before moving on to the pictures on the walls.  Jo noticed the way her smile fell away and her eyes darkened when they settled on a portrait of Adam and Maya from several years earlier.  It was a sweet picture of him sitting with his toddler daughter in his lap, both smiling wide for the camera.  Jo loved the picture.

 

“Where is the child?”

 

“The  _ child’s _ name is Maya, and she will be home in a little while.”

 

Mary turned back around to look at her.  “And Dean?”

 

“On his way home from work.  He doesn’t get a day off until Christmas day, but he has his evenings free, and he’ll be home soon.”  Jo decided to get them upstairs and into their room so they could get settled and out of her hair until Dean got home.  “Why don’t you guys follow me?  I’ll show you up to your room.”

 

She led them up to the guest bedroom and after pointing out the bathroom, hurried back downstairs to finish up the rest of dinner.  

 

When Dean walked in the back door a little while later, she was sipping a glass of wine and checking something in the oven.  She looked relieved when her eyes landed on him.

 

“Thank  _ god _ you’re home.  Your mother is here.  She referred to Maya as “the child”.  Wouldn’t even use her name, and looked disgusted at all of the pictures on the walls of her and Adam.  I don’t know if it was Adam she was upset with, or Maya.  Either way, you have your work cut out for you.  Oh, and Dave?  Nice guy, but he thought I was your girlfriend, so Mary didn’t tell him about you either.  This is going to be a fun Christmas!”

 

Dean groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.  “Where are they?”

 

“Upstairs still.  They haven’t come down since I showed them up to their room like a half hour ago.”

 

“And Cas still has Maya?”

 

“Yep.”  She replied.

 

“I’m going to go change, then I’ll say hello.   _ Then _ I’ll text Cas to come by for dinner.  Is there enough food for this many people?”  He went to the crock pot and peeked in.  It was a pretty big chicken.

 

“Cas bought a huge chicken, but he’s bringing by a salad, biscuits, and steamed broccoli.  I made cheesy mashed potatoes too, and I have a loaf of pumpkin bread in the oven.  Maya wanted some, and it’s my specialty.”  She pulled the loaf out and set it on the waiting trivet on the counter.  Dean hung his coat up and headed for the stairs.  

 

He smiled as he stepped into the master bedroom.  Everything was so neatly organized that finding a comfortable pair of jeans and a tee shirt to wear was easy.  Once he had changed, he texted Castiel and told him to head on over with Maya.  Then he made his way down the hall to the guest bedroom.

 

There were voices coming from inside and he recognized his mother’s right away.  He knocked twice and took a step back to wait for the door to open.  When it did, a man he assumed was Dave was standing there. 

 

“Hey, you must be Dean, I’m Dave.”

 

“Hi, yeah, I’m Dean, nice to meet you.”  Dean shook his hand.  Mary appeared a second later, pulling her son into a hug.

 

“I’ve missed you.”  She whispered fiercely against his ear.

 

“I’ve missed you too.”  He kissed her cheek.  Downstairs the doorbell rang.  He pulled back and smiled at her.

 

“There are people I would like you to meet.  I’m seeing someone, and of course I want you to meet Maya.”

 

She smiled tentatively and glanced up at Dave.  “My son, he doesn’t date women.  This means he’ll have a boyfriend coming to dinner.”

 

Dave smiled warmly.  “Can’t wait to meet him.  My daughter Laurel is gay, has a fantastic girlfriend she’s thinking of proposing to.  There’s nothing wrong with loving the person you feel is right for you.”

 

Dean knew right then that he liked this man.  He smiled back.

 

“His name is Castiel and he’s an elementary school teacher. He’s the sweetest guy in the world.  Come downstairs and meet him.”

 

They followed him down to the kitchen where Cas, Jo, and Maya were setting the table.  Maya set down the last plate and rushed over to hug Dean.

 

“I made ornaments with Cas!  We made paper chains and then we used a painting kit and made window ornaments!  He says they have to dry first, but then I can bring some of them home to hang in the windows here!  I made one that looks like Zelda, she’s funny.  She let me put a Santa hat on her and then Cas took pictures of her.  We took a silly one when she rolled onto her back.”  She laughed.  Dean chuckled, always amused by her exuberance.

 

“Really?  I want to see that one, it sound funny.”

 

“It was.  We made Christmas cookies too!” 

 

Dean scooped her up so she was eye level with him and with his mother and Dave.  

 

“It sounds like you had a full day.  Remember we had guests coming?”

 

She nodded, her expression sobering as she turned to look at Mary and Dave.  She offered her hand.  “My name is Maya Janelle Grace Winchester.  It is a pleasure to meet you.”

 

Dave smiled wide as he shook her hand.  “Aren’t you just a little angel?  Hello, doll.  How old are you?”

 

“I’m eight.”

 

“It’s very nice to meet you.”  Mary murmured as she shook Maya’s hand.  It was the briefest of touches, almost as if the contact physically burned her.

 

Dean motioned for Castiel to come over and once the man was close enough, he set Maya down and wrapped an arm around his waist.  “This is Castiel.  Cas, this is my mother, Mary Winchester, and this is Dave.”

 

“It is very nice to meet you both.”  Castiel smiled politely as he shook their hands.

 

“I didn’t even know Dean was seeing anyone.  He doesn’t tell me anything anymore.”  Mary said jokingly. She was aiming for lightheartedness but it came out rather tight.

 

“It’s pretty new, only a couple of months old, but we’re happy.  I like Cas a lot.”  Dean said.  

 

“That’s good, you deserve happiness.”  Mary genuinely sounded happy for him, and that eased some of his worry.  

 

“Dinner’s getting cold, let’s sit down and eat.”  Jo called everyone over, and they all sat down around the island.  Dean noticed that Castiel had pulled Maya’s hair back in another braid.  He was glad, it meant less mess later to deal with.

 

Maya was quiet, clearly picking up on the tension at the table, and Dean hated that she was feeling uncomfortable in her own home.  Mary barely glanced at her, so Dean decided he was going to make her the center of attention.

 

“So Jo and Maya got the tree put up.  Looks nice, doesn’t it?  We added a few more ornaments.”

 

“It does.  I like the blue and silver theme.”  Dave said cheerfully.  

 

“We made paper chains to add over the windows, and along the fireplace mantle.  Maya decorated each link herself.”  Castiel added.  Maya smiled at him.

 

“It was fun.”

 

“When my brothers and sister and I were little, my parents couldn’t afford a lot of decorations, so they’d buy construction paper, crayons, and tape, then tell us to make our own.  Later on they laminated those ornaments and they still use them to decorate their tree.  There are  _ a lot  _ of them, so now they actually put up two trees.”  Castiel said with a chuckle.

 

“Cas is the youngest of nine children.”  Dean explained.  Mary’s eyes widened.

 

“Oh my, and I thought I had my hands full with two.”

 

“Maya and I spent Thanksgiving with his family.  It was very nice.  I brought pie and we had a great day.”  Dean told her.  

 

“Uncle Dean makes the best pies.”  Maya piped up.  A smile ghosted over Mary’s face.

 

“Well, that’s only because you haven’t tasted mine.”  

 

“She’s the one that taught me how to make all of the yummy pies that you love.”   Dean told her.  

 

“Apple is my favorite.  And then cherry.”

 

“Apple was your uncle’s favorite when he was growing up too.”  Mary told her.  Dean counted it as a win that his mother was actually directly addressing Maya, and without hostility.

 

“Still is my favorite.”  Dean winked at his niece, making the little girl giggle.

 

“Dean makes a wonderful apple pie.”  Cas found his hand under the table and squeezed it.  Dean smiled at him.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“You’re quite welcome.”

 

The conversation was more pleasant after that.  Tension eased up a bit, though Mary still seemed to be avoiding looking directly at Maya, or addressing her, but Dave didn’t seem to share her bitter sentiment regarding Adam and anything related to him.  Dean wasn’t sure if he was not aware of the situation or if he was and just wasn’t petty enough to care.  So far, he thought the man was pretty nice.

 

Maya helped Dean clear the table after dinner, and then Jo served the pumpkin bread which she had put cream cheese frosting on.  When they were finished, Dean let Maya go up to her room to play for a bit before bed.  

 

“I have presents, they’re in one of our bags upstairs.  Should I bring them down now or tomorrow?”  Mary asked as they all moved into the living room and sat down.

 

“I gotta ask, ma, are any of those gifts for Maya?”  Dean settled back in his seat on the couch with Castiel at his side.  His mother and Dave were sitting at the other end.  Jo was sitting in the arm chair by the tree trying not to look anxious.  This visit was stressing her out more than it was Dean.

 

“I picked some things out for her.”  Dave said.  “We weren’t sure what she would like, or what her interests were.  It’s been a long time since I’ve had to think about what a little girl her age might like, so I picked out a couple of different things for her.  My daughter Paige gave me so ideas.  Hopefully she likes her presents.”

 

Dean was warmed by Dave’s thoughtfulness and he felt the way Cas leaned against him a little harder.  He was moved by it as well.

 

“I’m sure she’ll love them, she’s always grateful for anything she receives.  My brother raised her right, and I’m trying to emulate that.”  

 

“She’s a great kid.  Dean’s doing a wonderful job with her.”  Jo said.  

 

“Tell me about your job.  How do you like delivering mail?  Do you miss playing with the band?”  Mary was deliberately changing the topic again.  Dean foresaw a lot of this during her visit.  He was beginning to regret inviting her at all.

 

“I like my job.  The pay is decent and I work regular hours that bring me home every night.  I miss playing, sure, but I don’t miss the super late nights or spending weeks on the road or all of the after parties.  I was getting too old to keep up that lifestyle, and this works great for me.  I’m happy.  I get to spend my evenings with my two favorite people, and my weekends are free.  Heck, we’re talking about getting a dog.  These are things I couldn’t even imagine back in California.  There wasn’t enough time, not with all the traveling and playing we did.  If we weren’t on a stage or on the road, we were in the studio recording.  Jo knows what I’m talking about.”  

 

She nodded in agreement.  “It’s why I’m thinking of going home to stay.  I’m wanting to settle down, start a family, and mom’s talking about retiring and having me take over the bar.  I can still sing when I feel like it, and I’d have a hell of a lot more stability than I have now.  Plus I wouldn’t be paying almost $2,000 a month for a one bedroom apartment that I hardly get to see because I’m always traveling.”

 

“Sounds like moving home would be good for you.”  Dave said.  

 

“It would.  I rebelled as a kid, couldn’t wait to get away from my parents, but now I just want to go home, be around them and spend as much time with my family as possible.  I guess…I’m homesick.”  Jo smiled as she thought about her mom and Bobby.  The once or twice a year she saw them wasn’t nearly enough.

 

The conversation flowed easily, everyone wanting to get to know Dave better, and Dave wanting to get to know them better too.  Dean excused himself at nine to go and get Maya to bed, and Mary took the opportunity to question Cas while he was out of the room.

 

“So, you’re a teacher.  Is that what you wanted to do when you were growing up?”

 

“When I was little I wanted to be a vet for a while, but then I learned how much school that would take, so I decided not to go that route.  Then for a few years I wanted to be a police officer.  When my uncle got shot in the line of duty though, that scared me off that idea.  In middle school I became the assistant to the principal and I guess I got a small taste of that kind of power.  It was enough to give me a spark of interest in teaching and that’s the direction I decided I wanted to go in, so I did.  I hold a BA in science and an MA in mathematics.  Teaching is my passion and I’m helping Maya right now with her math homework.  It’s not her favorite subject.” Castiel replied.

 

Mary laughed softly.  “Well, I’m not sure it’s really anyone’s favorite subject.  It certainly wasn’t mine!”

 

“Mine either.  I liked history.”  Dave joined in the conversation.

 

“Are you and Dean getting serious?”  Mary asked.  Castiel smiled softly.

 

“I care about him very much.  I didn’t expect to even become interested in him, but…he’s an incredible man, and it’s was impossible not to fall for him.”  He could feel his cheeks heating up at the confession.  They reddened further when he looked up and saw Dean standing in the doorway.

 

“I’m crazy about you too.”  He crossed the room and took his seat on the couch, cuddling up behind Castiel again, and wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.  Could he call him his boyfriend after only one date?  Did all the nights he stayed for dinner, and the day he stopped by just to hang out and watch movies or just talk count as dates too?  Had they been dating all along?  That was something they would need to discuss after his mother went home.

 

“So, plans for tomorrow?”  Mary looked at her son expectantly.

 

“Well, unfortunately, I still have work.  Tomorrow Jo is doing some cooking, like a casserole, or something, she said.”  He looked over at his friend and she nodded in confirmation.  “I made pies, half are in the fridge, half are in the freezer uncooked.  They’ll be thawed and then popped in the oven.  The ones in the fridge, Cas will grab them, pop them in the oven at his house, and then we’ll be heading to his parents’ house for dinner.  We’ll be back around ten.  Christmas morning we’ll have breakfast here and open presents, then we’ll get started on the big cooking.  I have a beef brisket ready to put in the crock pot, potatoes to peel and cut, sweet potatoes to do the same with, and I’ll be making cranberries from scratch.”  Dean explained.

 

“Oh, well, I can get some of that done and out of the way tomorrow, so there is less to do on Christmas.”  Mary offered.  “Like the sweet potatoes, and I can make the cranberries.  You’re using my recipe, right?”

 

Dean nodded.  “Yep.”

 

“Then I’ll do that, and since you have the pies covered, I’ll make something else.”

 

“That would be great.”  Dean appreciated the help and with more hands pitching in, he hoped everyone would have more time to relax and enjoy themselves on Christmas day.  Hopefully it was a fun and wonderful day for Maya.  He worried since it was her first Christmas without her father.  Everything had to go smoothly.

 

 

The following morning Dean brought a thermos already filled with coffee to work with him.  He stopped to chat with Garth and Donna who had brought in donuts, and happily accepted one when it was offered.

 

“Have big plans for tomorrow?”  She asked them both.

 

“I’m spending it with my girlfriend and her family.”  Garth replied.  “Thinking about popping the question.”

 

Dean patted his friend on the back.  He was happy for him.

 

“That’s great!  Congratulations!  I bet she’s going to love the ring you chose.”

 

Garth smiled happily.  “I saw one she was looking at, so I went back and bought it.”

 

“Always a good choice.”  Dean nodded in approval.  Donna did too.

 

“He’s right.  She’ll love it.  What about you, Dean?”

 

“Well, tonight Maya and I are having dinner with Cas’ family, and tomorrow we’re doing dinner with my family.  So far, I think my mom likes Cas.  Her boyfriend Dave is pretty awesome and he’s going out of his way to include Maya.  I like the guy.  My mom’s still having a hard time with it.”

 

“Cause Maya’s not her grandchild, right?”  Donna asked.  Dean nodded.

 

“She’s still bitter over the divorce, even though it was like, almost 30 years ago.  I just wish she’d get over it.  Her marriage falling apart was not Adam’s fault and it definitely wasn’t Maya’s fault.  She’s an amazing little girl, and I’m raising her like she’s my own, so she’s always going to be there, for the rest of my life.  When my brother died, my mom actually got mad when I was named Maya’s legal guardian and I dropped everything to come out here to take care of her.  I don’t know what was going through her head.  Did she honestly think I’d let Maya go into the system?  Anna’s parents weren’t in her life, she was a foster kid that bounced around the system until she aged out.  The only family Maya has left are me and my brother Sam, and I don’t abandon my family.  I love her so much, I always have.”

 

His voice was tight with the threat of tears but he managed to keep his composure.  Both of his friends were frowning though, upset on his behalf.

 

“That’s unfair to Maya, she did nothing to deserve that kind of hostility.  Maybe you and your mom should go out for lunch and talk.”  Garth suggested.  Donna nodded in agreement.

 

“He’s right, take her somewhere nice, and just sit down and explain how you feel, and how Maya feels, and why you need each other.  Your mom might not like the fact that her ex-husband moved on and had a family after her, but he did, and you had an amazing little brother that you and Sam loved very much, and you lost that brother.  You’re grieving that loss, and worse than that,  _ Maya _ is grieving that loss.  It’s her first Christmas without her father, and that is incredibly hard on a child.  She can’t be coming into the home that Maya shared with her father and make her feel like she’s unwanted, or unloved, or like her father was.  It isn’t fair to her.”

 

Dean knew she was right.  He wanted to have that talk with his mother before tomorrow. That meant tonight, when he got back from dinner at Cas’ parents house.

 

“Yeah, I’ll do that tonight.”

 

“Hey, guys, what’s up?”  Charlie greeted them as she came down the hall.

 

“Hi there!”  Donna waved and held out the box of donuts.  “Merry Christmas!”

 

“Thanks, but I’m vegan.”  Charlie politely declined.  Her eyes landed on Dean and she smiled.  “I have something for you.”

 

“Me?”  He asked, curious as to what she could possibly have.

 

“Yep.  I got to the last of the letters, I’m just responding to emails now, but if you don’t mind, stop by my office when you get back this afternoon, before you go home, ok?  I have something important to give you.”

 

His curiosity grew tenfold and he nodded.  “Sure, I’ll stop by.”  A quick check of his watch told him it was time to get his truck ready.  It was time to hit the road.

 

 


	8. Chapter 8

 

“Where’s Maya?”

 

Jo looked over her shoulder to see Mary stepping into the kitchen.  Dave was nowhere to be seen.  He must still be asleep, she concluded.

 

“She is with Cas.  They’re doing some last minute Christmas shopping.  Maya wanted to get gifts for you and Dave.”

 

Something flashed across Mary’s face but she couldn’t quite determine what it was before it was gone and the older woman was sitting down at the island.

 

“This is a nice area?  I didn’t see much driving in the other night.”

 

“I haven’t gotten out of the house much but what I have seen, it’s nice.  I see why Adam settled here.  There’s a nice vibe here.  The people are friendly and they help one another out.  If I wasn’t going home to Sioux Falls, I’d definitely want to move here.”  Jo finished unloading the dishwasher and putting away everything from the night before.  She already had bread dough rising.  They were having garlic knots with dinner tonight along with the lasagna Dean had premade.

 

“Dean seems happy here.”  Mary noted.

 

“He is.  I didn’t believe him at first when he’d call and say he was happier than he was when he was out in Cali, but then I got here and I could see it for myself.  He really does like his job, and he fits into the role of fatherhood better than I think he believed he could.  He’s an amazing dad.  Maya adores him.  She says Adam wasn’t much of a cook, he never really learned, so they’d eat a lot of prepackaged foods, but she loves that Dean always cooks.  He doesn’t buy anything already made, he makes it all himself, and he’s teaching her how to cook.  She loves learning new things, and he loves teaching her.  Cas loves to cook too, so he teaches her things too.  He taught her how to make spaghetti and meatballs so she could surprise Dean one night for dinner.  I had no idea just how domestic Dean really was, but now that I see it, I realize this is who he really is.  He likes playing music, sure, but there was always something missing.  I think he’s found the missing pieces.”  Jo sat down in the seat next to her and leaned on the island.  

 

“I know it’s hard for you to be here, but you have to keep in mind this is Maya’s first Christmas without her father.  She grew up without a mother so Adam was all she ever knew.  Adam and for a while, John.  Then John died.  That little girl has been through hell.  She deserves to be happy, and Dean wants nothing more than for her to  _ be _ happy.  He’d move heaven and earth to make that happen.  She’s his world.”

 

Mary looked at the mantle again and the pictures hanging above it.  There was no denying that Adam had loved his little girl, or that she had loved him.  It still felt so bizarre knowing that her own son was responsible for raising the granddaughter of her ex-husband’s child by another woman.  Why did that still hurt after all these years?  Why couldn’t she just let that go?  And why did Dean have to care so damn much?

 

With a heavy sigh she turned her gaze away.  He cared so much because he was a decent human being, just like she and John both had raised him to be.  He cared because even if Maya was not  _ her _ family, she was Dean’s family, and family always came first.  She’d been selfish to expect her son to turn the child away, and she had come dangerously close to losing her own child over it.  Dave had been telling her for months now that she had no right to hold any resentment towards Maya, that the little girl was completely innocent.  Logically, she knew he was right.  Emotionally, she just wanted to hate her with every ounce of her being simply for existing.  

 

Laying eyes on Maya for the first time though, she’d known that hating the little girl would simply not be an option.  She was the sweet, innocent child Dave had insisted that she was, and she just wanted people to like and accept her.  It wasn’t going to happen overnight, but Mary knew she could at least be nice to her, especially for Christmas.  No child deserved to have someone be cruel to them for Christmas.

 

“I think maybe I’ll wake Dave up and we’ll go do some last minute Christmas shopping as well.  What do you think Cas might like?”  Mary asked as she got to her feet.

 

“You know, I’m not sure.  I say text Dean and ask.”

 

Mary nodded as she started for the stairs.  “I’ll do that.  I have a few things I want to get.  Is it just you, Dave and me for dinner tonight, then?”

 

“Yep.  I have lasagna and garlic knots planned out.”  Jo replied.  Mary nodded thoughtfully.

 

“Italian.  Alright, how does tiramisu sound for dessert then?  I won’t make one, but I’ll stop by a bakery and pick one up.”

 

“Sounds delicious.”  Jo loved tiramisu.

 

“Alright.  I’ll go wake sleepyhead up and get going, then when we get back, I can get started on the cranberries and sweet potatoes.”

 

Jo watched her leave before releasing the breath she’d be holding in.  Maybe this would turn out to be a nice Christmas after all.

 

Dean received multiple texts throughout the day, and he responded when he had the chance.  His mother’s texts were the most perplexing though.  She was standing in Sears, having dragged Dave out for some last minute shopping, and she wanted to know what size shirt Castiel wore.  He honestly wasn’t even sure.  They hadn’t been intimate, and he hadn’t bought Cas clothes for Christmas, so finding out his clothing size hadn’t been high on his priority list.  He told her as much and she said that was fine, she’d seen some things she thought would make nice presents that weren’t shirts.  

 

Then she’d texted him a while later to ask what Maya’s favorite color was.  That had stopped him in his tracks.  He’d been on his lunch break and nearly dropped his sandwich when he’d read the message.  Was she buying something for his niece?  What had spurred that?  Had someone talked to her?  He was betting it was Jo.  She had a way of getting through to people.  He’d responded that her favorite colors were blue and purple, she loved them both equally, and his mother had replied with a simple thank you.  That had left him wondering what was going on for the rest of the day.

 

When he got back to the post office, he was in a hurry to unload and get out, having completely forgotten his promise to stop by and see Charlie.  She had not forgotten about him though.  

 

“Hey, not going to run out on me, are ya?”

 

He was dropping off a cart of outgoing mail when he heard her voice, suddenly remembering that he was supposed to go see her.

 

“I’m sorry, it slipped my mind.  My mom has been sending me some pretty weird texts all day and it has me sort of on edge.  I want to get home and make sure everything is ok.”  He stopped in the hall and waited for her to reach him.

 

“I get it.  Families can be complicated.  Yours though, I have a good feeling about.  This is for you.  Now, don’t open it until Christmas morning, ok?  It’s from Santa.”  She winked as she handed over an ornately decorated envelope.  It felt like whatever was inside was cardstock, heavy and thick.  He smiled as he turned it over in his hands.  Little reindeer and elves adorned the envelope as well as tiny ornaments and pine trees.  Upon closer inspection he realized each one had been hand drawn, including the fat Santa drawn into the left corner with his long list clutched between his fingers.  He almost didn’t want to open it.  Taped to the upper right corner was a candy cane.

 

“This is beautiful.”  

 

“What’s inside is even more special, trust me.”  She surprised him by hugging him tight.  “Now, I won’t be here after Christmas, but I really hope we can stay friends.  You have my number and I have yours.  We’ll have to get together.  I’m having a New Year’s get together.  You and Cas should totally come.  Jo too.”

 

“I can’t, Maya.”  He shook his head.  

 

“I bet Cas has a dozen nieces or nephews that could easily babysit for a couple of hours.”  She said.  He mulled that over for a minute.  There were a few that got along quite well with Maya, actually.  He could ask tonight.

 

“Ok, I’ll talk to Cas about it tonight.”  

 

“Yay!  We’ll have fun!  I can’t wait to hear what you think of your gift!”  She nodded towards the card still in his hands.

 

“I do have to get home though, I’ll text you later.”  He said.  She gave one last wave before turning and heading back to her office and he continued on, sticking the envelope into the inner pocket of his coat so his hands were free to push the cart.  Jo had said all things were good on the homefront.  He hoped they still were.

 

He arrived home to the sound of Bing Crosby crooning on the record player, singing White Christmas, and the smell of lasagna cooking in the oven.  His stomach grumbled but he knew he’d have to wait until he got to the Novak house to eat.  The kitchen was empty so after stripping his coat off, he plucked the envelope out of the pocket and headed into the living room.  Mary and Dave were sitting in the center of the floor in front of the couch wrapping presents and they both looked up smiling when he walked in.

 

“Hello, darling, how was your day?”  She asked.

 

“Long.  How was yours?”

 

“The stores were crowded, but not as crowded as in the really big cities.  I didn’t stand in line for three hours just to buy something, which was nice.”  She replied as she taped the end of the box she was wrapping.

 

“Where’s Jo?”  He didn’t see or hear her anywhere.

 

“Oh, she ran to the corner store.  We ran out of brown sugar for the sweet potatoes.”  Mary replied.  “She should be back any minute now.”

 

Dean unbuttoned his work shirt and checked the time.  They had to be at the Novak house in two hours.  He pulled his phone out but it was almost dead.  Just as he was about to send a text to Castiel, telling him to bring Maya back so she could put on her nice clothes, someone knocked.  He went to answer it and there stood his boyfriend and niece.

 

“Uncle Dean!  Cas and me made plum pudding!  It’s soooo good!  We made a spice cake too!  We made these little pinwheel things with meat and cream cheese and spinach too, but they’re gross, I hate them!”  Maya exclaimed as she burst into the house.  Dean chuckled, always in awe of her enthusiasm.

 

“I don’t much care for those either.”  He admitted.

 

“Nor do I, but my parents and a couple of my brothers love them, so they asked me to make them.”  Castiel said as he entered the house and closed the door behind him.  Before it fully shut, a hand slapped against it and it was shoved back open.  Jo stepped inside and closed it.

 

“Got the brown sugar, and more eggs, just in case.”  She nodded at Dean and Castiel before heading into the kitchen.

 

“She had a shower this morning, Jo made sure of that, and really, she didn’t get dirty today.  I braided her hair so it wouldn’t get in the way.  She just needs to get dressed.”  Castiel said.

 

“Good, one less thing I have to do.  But I believe that I do need a shower.”  Dean looked over towards where his mother and Dave were.  They were still engrossed in their gift wrapping, and Maya was on the couch talking Dave’s ear off.  Dean turned his attention back to Castiel.  “Care to wait in my room for me til I’m done?”

 

Castiel raised an eyebrow and smiled.  “I can do that.  Have you picked out what you plan to wear tonight?”

 

“I haven’t.  Maybe you could select something for me.”  Dean took him by the hand and led him towards the stairs.  No one noticed as they headed up to the second floor and even if they did, he was an adult and this was his house.  He could have whoever he wanted in his room.

 

“You have a master bathroom.”  Castiel noted when they entered the bedroom.

 

“I do.  We didn’t use it until recently though.  I still need to give it a really good scrubbing.  I’ll do that maybe over New Year’s.”  Dean closed the bedroom door and stripped off his work shirt.  He tossed it in the hamper inside the closet and when he turned around he found Castiel inspecting one of his guitars.

 

“I’ve never heard you sing.”

 

Dean came up behind him, slipping his arms around the man’s waist and hooking his chin over his shoulder.

 

“Would you like me to sing for you?”

 

“Can you sing something romantic?”  Castiel asked.  Dean reached around him to grab the guitar and carried it over to the bed.  He sat down, getting comfortable as he tried to think of something romantic to sing that wasn’t  _ too _ romantic.   As crazy as he was about Castiel, he wasn’t ready to go making declarations of love just yet.  

 

“Most of my original stuff wasn’t really romantic.”  He admitted.  “But I did a lot of covers too.  I’m not sure if you’ll know this one, but…”  He couldn’t help the way his cheeks heated up.  Castiel smiled as he began playing the opening chords, and he moved over to sit beside him on the bed.  Dean counted the beats, took a deep breath and began to sing.

 

_ “What day is it _

_ And in what month _

_ This clock never seemed so alive _

_ I can’t keep up and I can’t back down _

_ I’ve been losing so much time _

 

_ Cause there’s you and me _

_ And all of the people with nothing to do _

_ Nothing to lose _

_ And there’s you and me _

_ And all other people _

_ And I don’t know why _

_ I can’t keep my eyes off of you _

 

_ What are the things that I want to say _

_ Just aren’t coming out right _

_ I’m tripping on words _

_ You got my head spinning _

_ I don’t know where to go from here _

 

_ Cause there's you and me _

_ And all of the people with nothing to do _

_ Nothing to lose _

_ And there’s you and me _

_ And all other people _

_ And I don’t know why _

_ I can’t keep my eyes off of you _

 

_ What are the things that I want to say _

_ Just aren’t coming out right _

_ I’m tripping on words _

_ You got my head spinning _

_ I don’t know where to go from here _

 

_ Cause there’s you and me _

_ And all of the people with nothing to do _

_ Nothing to prove _

_ And there’s you and me _

_ And all other people _

_ And I don’t know why _

_ I can’t keep my eyes off of you _

 

_ Something about you now _

_ That I can’t quite figure out _

_ Everything he does is beautiful _

_ Everything he does is right _

 

_ Cause there’s you and me and all of the people with nothing to do _

_ Nothing to lose _

_ And there’s you and me and all of the people and I don’t know why _

_ I can’t keep my eyes off of you and me _

_ And all of the people with nothing to do _

_ Nothing to prove _

_ And there’s you and me and all other people _

_ And I don’t know why _

_ I can’t keep my eyes off of you _

 

_ What day is it _

_ And in what month _

_ This clock never seemed so alive” _

 

The last word barely passed his lips before Castiel was kissing him, taking his breath away.  He set the guitar behind him on the bed and wrapped his arms around him, holding him as he kissed him back.

 

“That was beautiful, Dean, absolutely beautiful!  What song was that?”  Castiel asked when they finally broke apart.

 

“You and Me by Lifehouse.  I’ve sung it plenty of times but I’ve never sung it  _ to _ someone.  It has a whole new meaning for me now.”  Dean traced his thumb over Castiel’s cheek as he stared into his eyes.  He loved this shade of blue.  

 

“I would love to hear you sing more songs.”

 

“Just for you?”  Dean teased.  Castiel smiled, his cheeks flushing the softest shade of pink.  He was truly beautiful like this.

 

“Well, once in a while, that would be nice.”

 

Dean kissed him tenderly.  Castiel was the best thing to ever happen to him.  “I can most certainly do that.”

 

“Go, take your shower now.  I’ll pick out your clothes.”  

 

Dean grabbed his guitar and stood up.  After returning it to its stand, he toed off his boots since he’d forgotten to take them off downstairs, and then pulled his socks off.  Those joined his shirt in the hamper.  He was aware of Castiel’s eyes on him as he unbuckled his belt and hung it on its hook on the back of the closet door, and then took off his pants.  When he turned to look at him, there was a hungry look in the man’s eyes.  With a chuckle he walked into the bathroom and closed the door.  They weren’t ready for sex yet and they both knew it.

 

The shower felt great and when he was finished, he shaved and styled his hair.  He’d forgotten to bring clean underwear with him though, so after wrapping his towel tightly around his waist and putting his robe on, he opened the door and walked into the bedroom.  To his disappointment, he found the room empty.  His clothes were laid out neatly on the bed though and he dressed quickly.  After a splash of cologne, he headed downstairs.

 

Castiel was sitting on the couch fixing Maya’s hair and he looked apologetically up at Dean when he walked in the room.

 

“Sorry, I managed to pick out your clothes but then she came knocking on your door crying because one of her braids fell out, so I told her we’d try a different type of braid.”  

 

“It’s cool.”  Dean said as he sat down next to him.  “You look beautiful, Maya.

 

“Thank you, Uncle Dean.  You look very handsome.  Were you singing earlier?”

 

“I was.  Cas asked me to sing him a song, so I did.”

 

“Will you sing me one too?”  She asked.  Dean smiled.

 

“I sure will.”

 

“I’m hungry.”  She pouted.

 

“We’re eating as soon as we get there.  Then we’re opening presents, then dessert.”  Castiel told her.

 

“Do I get presents?”  She asked.

 

“Yes, you do.”  He replied as he pinned the last of her braid into place.  She now had a perfect crown on her head that made it look like she had a halo.  When her hair hung down it almost reached her waist.

 

“Where did you learn to do so many different styles of braids?”  Mary asked from her seat on the chair by the tree.

 

“Oh, I have sisters.  I would watch them do their hair all the time and Hael was absolutely awful at it.  My mother couldn’t style hair to save her life.  Nine kids and she buzz cut all the boys and did a bowl cut on all the girls til we were like, ten.  It was horrible.  Hael’s hair is beautiful, and she wanted to grow it out.  Well, in my family, we have a problem where our hair just doesn’t seem to want to be tamed.”  Castiel pointed at his own hair, making everyone chuckle.  It always looked sort of windblown.  “Anyway, Hael is nine months older than me.  We’re the Irish twins of the family.  Her hair would get tangled and mom would threaten to cut it off.  My sisters Rachel and Rebecca wouldn’t help her but I saw the way they braided their hair, so I asked Hael if I could practice on her.  She said yes.  I didn’t figure it out overnight, mind you, but I did get the hang of it in time.  Then came nieces, and I got to braid their hair too.  Maya’s hair is so beautiful, and she truly looks like a princess when it’s up in a crown like this.  She loves having her hair braided, and Dean doesn’t know how.  I don’t mind doing it.”

 

“My brother Sam’s hair is almost long enough to braid now.”  Dean joked.  Mary let out a startled laugh.  

 

“Dean!”

 

He laughed and grinned.  “What?  It is!”

 

She waved a hand at him and shook her head, but she was laughing.  “Leave your brother alone, he has beautiful hair.”

 

“Ok, it’s time go, and I have to stop by my house to get all of the presents and the stuff Maya and I have made.”  Castiel said as he stood up.  Dean stood up as well as Maya.

 

“Alright, let’s get going.”

 

“Drive safely.”  Mary said as they went to get their coats on.

 

“We will.”  Dean grabbed his pies and ushered everyone out the front door.  They were taking Castiel’s car tonight.

 

The ride to the Novak house was pleasant and Maya was content to sing Christmas songs the entire way.  Dean joined in and eventually Castiel did too.  When they reached the house, most everyone had already arrived and  they were welcomed warmly.  Maya immediately found other kids to play with but was soon called away to dinner.  After they had eaten, they all gravitated to the living room.  There were some 40 plus people all crammed into the living room so finding a piece of furniture to sit on was next to impossible.  Dean settled for leaning against the wall outside the dining room with Castiel leaning against his chest as they watched the grandparents handing out presents to all of the children.  Gabe made his way over, smirking when he saw the two of them standing together.

 

“I see he’s no longer just your neighbor.” 

 

Castiel grinned and leaned into Dean more.  “No, he’s not.”

 

“Maya looks really cute.  You did her hair?”

 

“I did.  She likes having it braided.”

 

“Reminds me of our cousin Anna.  Same red hair.”  Gabe mused.  Dean stiffened suddenly which made Castiel turn around to look at him.

 

“What’s the matter?”

 

“Maya’s mother’s name was Anna.”  He replied.  Castiel and Gabe both looked shocked.

 

“Anna wasn’t our first cousin.  She’s our dad’s first cousin.  Our second.  Or something like that.  Wow, so Maya would be like, our fourth cousin, or something crazy like that.”  Gabe scratched at his jaw.  “Explains the red hair.  We have a lot of that in the family.”

 

Castiel settled back against Dean’s chest.  “Doesn’t change how I feel about her, or about you.”

 

Dean’s arms around his waist squeezed a bit tighter and he kissed Castiel’s cheek.  How he felt was pretty intense, and he saw this lasting long term.  The look on Gabe’s face told him they looked like a couple of sappy lovebirds, and well, he was perfectly ok with that.

 

“Uncle Dean!  Look what I got!”  Maya was suddenly at their side waving a box around and he had to pluck it from her hands before he could see what it even was.

 

“Oh…Battleship!  Man I  _ love _ this game!  We are  _ so _ playing tomorrow!”

 

“I’m playing the winner.”  Castiel announced.

 

“Deal!”  Dean handed his niece back the box.  She was examining the picture on the front.

 

“It’s fun?”

 

“You get to sink your enemy’s ships.  Of course it’s fun!”  Dean cried.  She giggled and clutched the box to her chest.

 

“I’m going to sink  _ all _ of yours!”

 

“Not if I sink yours first!”  He warned.

 

“I will show you how to play, and the best places to hide yours so Uncle Dean doesn’t sink yours right away.”  Castiel promised her.

 

“Hey, that’s cheating!”  Dean nudged his side and Castiel chuckled as he squirmed away.

 

“No, it is not cheating.  It is helping someone who has never played before.  Would you throw her into a game of Monopoly without her knowing how to properly play?  Nevermind, don’t answer that, of course you would.”  He said dryly.  Dean laughed and even Gabe did.

 

“What’s Mon…Mon…Monopalolly?”  Maya asked.

 

“It’s a complicated game, and even though it says on the box that it’s meant for children, I don’t recommend playing it until you have at least a basic grasp on finances and how to save money, because it’s a math oriented game.  The fun part is taking all of your opponent’s money and property and making them go bankrupt.  It is a long game, and you must have patience to play.  I’ve always been very good, but then again, I love math.”  Castiel explained.

 

“He can beat our entire family.  Our brothers and sisters always hated playing with him when we were kids because even when we cheated, he always won.”  Gabe said.  

 

“I don’t want to play a math game.  Math isn’t fun.”  Maya wrinkled her nose which just made them all laugh.  Her name was called again so Dean took the Battleship box so she could run back over to the tree.

 

“It’s wonderful that they’re including her.  I don’t really know what Adam was doing with her.  I came for Christmas once or twice with Sam, but my mom could be…”  Dean huffed in annoyance.  “She’d demand that we come see  _ her _ , not Adam and Maya, so what I started doing was telling her I was on tour and couldn’t come.  Then I’d come here to spend a few days with Adam and my niece.  Sam would come usually.  His excuse was usually that he had mono, or pneumonia.  He was as thrilled to spend the holidays with our mom as I was.  The fact that she decided to come spend it with me this year shocked me.  I think she now knows that if she ever wants to spend a Christmas with me again, she has no choice.  Maya’s part of the deal, and that her first one without her dad, I wasn’t dragging her all the way to Kansas.  I couldn’t anyway, I couldn’t get the time off work.”

 

“My folks love all the grandkids, biological and adopted.  They just love kids and include them all.  They don’t care how they joined the family.”  Gabe shared a knowing look with his brother that Dean missed.  Castiel swallowed the lump in his throat and leaned into Dean some more.  This was the happiest he’d been in a very long time, and his brother could clearly see that.

 

Maya ended up getting a unicorn pillow pet that she was excited to go home and sleep with, a set of fleece pajamas with fuzzy socks, and new hair accessories.  Castiel was more excited about those than she was because it meant he could experiment more with her hair.  Dean even got gifts, a new thick throw blanket he intended to put over the back of the couch and a weather kit for his car.  He planned to use that for his postal truck instead.  After pie, coffee, and avoiding another strange pumpkin dessert, this one some kind of custard, they started the drive home.

 

Maya fell asleep on the ride, head propped up on her pillow and Dean’s throw blanket tucked around her.  She looked so peaceful.  When they reached the house Dean carried his sleeping niece inside while Castiel carried the empty pie containers and the presents inside.  It was after 11, nearing midnight by the time they’d gotten back, not the ten that they’d anticipated, and the house was silent.  Castiel waited for Dean to come back downstairs and when he didn’t, he tiptoed up to the second floor to see if he needed help.  He found him searching through his niece’s hair for bobby pins, trying to take the braid out.

 

“How many of these did you put in?”  Dean whispered.

 

Cas slid his coat off and draped it over the chair in the corner before approaching the bed.

 

“I’m not sure, maybe 30?” 

 

Dean made a face before pulling another one out.  “I didn’t want her sleeping on this.  She was whining in her sleep, it’s not comfortable.”

 

Cas moved to the other side of the bed and knelt down to search for some of the pins.  He quickly found at least ten and deftly removed them.  Once he was sure there were no more, he let the braids down and broke the bands holding them in place.  Those could always be replaced.  He combed his fingers lightly through her locks as she groaned and rolled onto her side away from him.  Dean kissed the top of her head before tucking her unicorn pillow under her arm.  She’d dragged it upstairs with her.  He hadn’t bothered changing her, just taken off her shoes and tucked her into bed.

 

“We got them all?”  Dean asked as he picked up the ones he’d collected.  Castiel nodded and picked up his as well.

 

“Yes, her head shouldn’t be sore in the morning.”

 

They both stood up and started for the door, Castiel pausing only long enough to grab his coat.

 

“Um, I was wondering, do you want to stay the night?  I’m not talking sex.  I’m just thinking it would be nice to hold you in my arms.”  Dean was blushing as he closed Maya’s bedroom door.  Castiel smiled and leaned in to kiss him.

 

“As much as I love that idea, I’m wearing contacts, and I can’t sleep in them, and I think maybe we should wait until your mother is gone.  Even  _ if _ all we’re planning to do is sleep.  We’ll plan for it, I’ll bring an overnight back with my contact solution, and maybe we’ll aim for a Friday night, so we can sleep in on Saturday.”

 

Dean smiled and nodded.  “That works.  Oh, damn, I forgot, we’ve been invited to a New Year’s party.  I was supposed to ask one of your nieces, or even your nephews if they could watch Maya New Year’s eve for a few hours.  You, me and Jo, we’re all invited.”

 

“What about your mom and Dave?”  Castiel asked as he guided Dean towards the stairs and away from the bedrooms.

 

“I heard Dave say they’re leaving the 26 th .  He has his kids to still visit.”

 

They headed downstairs and made their way to the front door.  Aside from Dean singing to him in the bedroom earlier, this was the only time they’d been alone all day.  His eyes flickered to Dean’s lips and his boyfriend seemed to get the hint because a second later he found himself being kissed again.  

 

Without anyone or anything to rush them, they took their time exploring one another’s mouths.  When they parted, Castiel let out a contented sigh.

 

“Let’s aim for the 29 th , ok?  You’ll stay over and I’ll make us waffles and bacon the next morning.  Maybe we’ll make a weekend of it.  I’m off til Tuesday.  We can take Maya ice skating or something, or go to a museum.  Then the 31 st we’ll go to the party and the 1 st we’ll order pizza and watch movies.”  Dean stroked his thumb over his boyfriend’s kiss swollen lips and watched as those blue eyes flicked up to stare deep into his own green ones.  

 

“I would like that.”  It was that moment Castiel knew he was falling irrevocably, head over heels in love, and it was the best feeling in the world.

 

Dean couldn’t find the card anywhere.  The last thing he’d remembered was taking it out of his coat after work yesterday before heading upstairs and then…

 

Had he brought it to his room?  He’d been distracted by having Castiel in his private space, and getting the chance to sing, it had pushed all thoughts of anything else out of his head.  Now though, he remembered it, and he was desperate to find it.  Someone knocked on his bedroom door.

 

“Come in!”

 

The door opened and he popped his head up from where he was kneeling on the other side of the bed to see Jo standing there.  She cocked an eyebrow at him.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“I’m looking for a card my friend gave me.  I misplaced it last night.”

 

“A card?  What does it look like?”

 

“It has pictures drawn on it.  Santa, reindeer, ornaments.”  He described.

 

“And a candy cane taped to it?”  She asked.  His heart leapt excitedly as he got to his feet.  His knees groaned in protest.

 

“Yes!  Where is it?”

 

“I stuck it to the fridge.  You left it on the island.  I stole the candy cane though, used it in my hot chocolate.  Hope that’s ok.”  She grinned sheepishly.

 

“That’s fine, I wasn’t going to eat it, I just want what’s inside the envelope.”  He started for the door.  “What brought you up here?”

 

“Oh, Mary made breakfast.  Even Cas is here.  We’re all just waiting on you.”  She replied as she followed him downstairs.

 

“One less thing I have to do.”  He was glad he didn’t have to make breakfast too.  When they arrived in the kitchen, Mary was sliding fluffy pancakes onto everyone’s plates while Dave was adding slices of strawberries and whipped cream.

 

“I’ve never had whipped cream on pancakes!”  Maya exclaimed.

 

“Well, you’re in for a treat.  This was your Uncle Sam’s favorite Christmas breakfast growing up.”  Mary said.  Dean glanced over at Jo who just smiled.  He moved over to the empty seat next to Castiel and sat down, kissing his cheek and murmuring good morning to him.  Castiel smiled warmly as he said it in return.

 

“My mom used to make these fantastic cinnamon pecan pancakes.  Those were my favorite when I was a boy.  Sammy would get his plain ones with strawberries and whipped cream but I’d get the cinnamon ones with the pecans and this yummy cream cheese syrup.”  Dean was telling his niece.  A plate was set down in front of him and as soon as the smell of cinnamon hit him he whipped his head around to look at it.  He gasped when he saw what was sitting there.

 

“Mom!”

 

Mary smiled fondly at her son while Dave chuckled from his seat.  He had a plate of cinnamon pecan pancakes in front of him as well.  She looked at Castiel and Jo.

 

“Which would you prefer?”

 

“Both?”  Jo asked.  Dean snickered as he picked up his knife and fork and cut into his stack.  Rather than take the first bite for himself, he offered it to his boyfriend.  Castiel groaned and pointed to Dean’s plate.  After chewing and swallowing he licked a bit of the syrup from his lips and nodded.

 

“I would like those, please!”

 

Mary laughed and set a plate down in front of him too.  “I thought you might.  They’re a family favorite.  My mother used to make them for us when we were kids, and her mother made them for her and her brothers and sisters when they were kids.  Sam never cared for them though, so I had to come up with something different for him.  The boy always loved strawberries though, so while everyone else ate the pecan pancakes, Sam got strawberry ones.”  

 

“Can I try those?”  Maya asked.  Cas cut a piece and offered it to her.  She chewed thoughtfully before swallowing.  “I like the frosting.”

 

Everyone laughed, Mary included.

 

“Yes, the frosting is delicious.”

 

There was bacon and coffee to go with the pancakes and then Maya was being sent upstairs to brush her hair and teeth.  Dean let her change into her new pajamas from Castiel’s parents.  He figured it was Christmas morning and he was still in his own sleep pants, so why not?  After cleaning up breakfast he got the beef brisket in the crock pot and found the card where Jo had stuck it to the fridge.  Castiel had brought over a bunch of presents and now there were so many under the tree that they were overflowing.  Jo grabbed her camera and dragged a chair in from the never used dining room to sit on and take pictures of everything.  Dean sat on the floor with his back to the fireplace and began handing out presents.

 

This was his first real Christmas spent with family and he’d gone a little nuts.  Without a whole lot of time to shop, save for weekends, he’d completed most of his shopping on Amazon, and had everything shipped to the house where he’d had Castiel hide the boxes in the attic.  One by one, after Maya had gone to bed at night, he’d been taking them down, opening them, and wrapping them.  He couldn’t make up for her dad being gone, but he wanted this first Christmas without him to still be a good one.  She had crawled into his lap and was accepting boxes he handed her to pass out to people, smiling as she did so.

 

“This one’s for you, Mary, it’s from Cas, and from me.”  She smiled wide as she handed it over.  Mary accepted the box and smiled at Castiel.

 

“Thank you, sweetheart.”  He smiled back.

 

“Of course.”

 

“Me and Cas went shopping together.”  Maya said.

 

“Cas and I.”  Castiel corrected.  She gave one hard nod, acknowledging her grammatical mistake.

 

“Right, Cas and I.  We went shopping.  I hope you like it.”

 

Mary opened the paper and then the box.  She covered her mouth with one shaky hand before looking up at the little girl.

 

“Did you pick this out?”

 

Maya smiled wide and nodded.  “I thought it was pretty.  Her dress is the same color as your hair.”

 

It was a music box with a little ballerina inside that danced when you twisted the knob.  Mary cranked it and “Hey Jude” began to play.  She burst into tears.

 

“Why are you crying?  Did I do something wrong?”  Maya asked.  She looked at her uncle in alarm.  “What did I do?”  He hugged her tight and smoothed his hand down her back before kissing her head.

 

“You didn’t do anything wrong.  Actually, you did something really right.  You know how sometimes when you can’t sleep because you dream of your dad and I come in and I sing that song to you?”  He asked.  She nodded and leaned against his chest.

 

“Yeah, that song makes me not miss him so much.  It makes me feel like he’s watching over me.”

 

“Because he is.  He’ll always be watching over you.  That song is really special because when I was little and I’d have bad dreams or I couldn’t sleep, my mom would sing that song to me.”

 

Maya turned to look at Mary who was dabbing furiously at her eyes with one hand while clutching the music box to her chest with the other.

 

“So it’s real special to her cause it reminds her of when you were a little boy?”

 

“Exactly.”  Dean kissed the top of her head again, inhaling the scent of her strawberry shampoo.  His heart ached with love for this little girl and when he looked over at his mother, he could see it in her eyes too.  Whatever she had felt towards his father and Kate, that animosity was gone.  Maya was an innocent child, and she harbored no ill will towards her anymore.

 

“Come here, sweetie.”  Mary’s voice choked as she held her arms out.  Maya got up and went to her, letting the woman sweep her into her arms.  Tentatively she hugged her back.  

 

“This might just be my most favorite present ever.  Thank you, to you and Cas for picking it out for me.”

 

Castiel wiped at his own eyes before looking over at Dean and seeing how red rimmed his eyes were.  Once Mary let Maya go, the little girl returned to her uncle’s lap and her duties as the present distributor.  Gift after gift, she handed them out, switching to Castiel’s lap whenever there was a present for Dean to open.  He was happy to receive a new sweater from his mom but Dave had somehow picked up on his love of classic rock  _ and _ the fact that he loved vinyl.  He’d picked him up some vintage albums and Dean dropped everything to get up and put one on.  There’d been some dancing after that, mostly with Maya until the little girl was collapsing in a fit of giggles.  The gift giving continued, and Jo was excited to get a new set of candles and jewelry as well as nail polish from Maya.  She foresaw a girls’ spa day before she went home to Cali.

 

When Dean’s butt had finally had enough of the floor, he joined Castiel on the couch, squeezing in behind him and sneaking kisses to his neck that made him shiver.  His boyfriend was still marveling over the leather bound journal Dean had bought him with his name engraved on the front and the books Dean had also given him.  Mary had bought him a beautiful scarf set that was nicer and warmer than what he currently had, and Jo had given him a Starbucks gift card.  That was going to be put to  _ very  _ good use.  While he checked out one of the books, skimming over the introduction, Dean remembered the card and pulled it out of his pocket.

 

“What’s that?”  Castiel asked.  He glanced over at Maya who was playing on the floor with her new dollhouse.

 

“Uh,  _ Santa _ gave it to me.”  He said.  Castiel’s eyes darted over to Maya and he nodded in understanding.

 

“Ah.”  He sat up so Dean would have room to sit properly and use both hands to open it.  With Castiel and Jo both watching, he very carefully opened the back and slipped out the card inside.

 

He’d been right about it being cardstock, but it wasn’t quite what he’d expected.  The envelope had been big but upon closer inspection he realized even that had been handmade.  Envelopes really didn’t come in that size.  He opened the card to find that it had three parts.  The first part was a letter, addressed to him from Santa.  Castiel, curious with all of the cute pictures decorating the page, leaned over to read it with him.  It was a piece of paper that had been carefully glued to the cardstock, turning it into a card.  The entire thing was intricately done, and decorated beautifully.  A lot of thought had gone into making it.  He smiled as he began to read it.

 

_ Dear Dean, _

 

_ You have been especially good this year.  Your family has been through so very much, and even way up here in the North Pole, we have heard about all of the heartache the Winchester family has endured.  Even ole Santa’s heart can break.  But good things are coming your way, my boy.  You have a beautiful, loving family surrounding you and a little girl that loves you very much.  Thank you for making this first Christmas without her father one that she will cherish and look back on with fondness.   _

 

_ Now, that being said, I have two very important letters on the following pages that arrived here in the North Pole last month.  I read them carefully and then I read them again.  I responded to the first one, in the way that I felt would be most helpful.  You see, of all the things that young Maya could have asked for this Christmas, toys, money, candy, she only asked for one thing.  She asked for me to make you happy.  She believed that you were lonely and she was trying all by herself to make you happy.  The following letters are hers to me.  I am returning them to you, Dean, so that might know the power of a child’s love, but also the power of a child’s wish for you see, she firmly believes her wish has come true.  You have truly made this Christmas wonderful for her.  Love her with all your heart, Dean, but love those around you as well.  And don’t be afraid to be happy. _

 

_ Santa~ _

 

With a shaky hand Dean turned the page and read Maya’s first letter to Santa.  A choked sob escaped before he could stop it and he buried his face against Castiel’s neck.

 

“Uncle Dean?”  Maya’s hand was warm on his knee, startling him and he looked up to see her standing in front of him.  

 

“Sweetheart, I’m ok, really.”

 

“You sure?  You don’t usually cry.”  She looked so skeptical.  Damn she looked like Adam at that moment.  

 

“Yeah, I’m sure.”  He wiped his eyes and waited until she had gone back to her dollhouse before he turned back to the third letter.  Castiel was leaning on his shoulder, reading with him, threading their fingers together and squeezing lightly.  He let out a gasp as he realized what Maya had been saying in the second letter.

 

“Oh!”

 

“Yeah, she knew, before we did, she knew.”  Dean set the letter down and cupped his face.  “Her wish, it really did come true.”

 

“So did mine.”  Castiel had tears of his own and Dean gently wiped them away before kissing him.  Jo leaned over to snag the card and read it.

 

“Well, great, now I’m crying.”  She blurted before bursting into tears.  Mary and Dave shared a look before she got up and took the card to read it.  She carried it back to her end of the couch where they read it together.  They were crying by the end of it too.

 

“That’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever read!”  Dave was an ugly crier, but the sentiment was sweet.

 

“What is that?”  Maya asked as she watched the card keep changing hands until it was back in her uncle’s.  He held it close to his chest before sharing another tender kiss with Castiel.

 

“It’s my gift from Santa.  He wrote me a letter telling me I’m being a really good uncle to you, but I’m being a really good son and a good brother and a good boyfriend too.”  Dean sniffled and wiped at his eyes before looking at his niece.  She smiled.

 

“Cause you are, silly.  You’re the bestest uncle in the world.”

 

“Why don’t you go get dressed and we’ll take the flowers you and Cas bought over to the cemetery, ok?  It’s time to say hi to your mom and dad for Christmas.”  Dean told her.  She tucked her little dolls back into the dollhouse and walked over to Castiel.

 

“Can you do other stuff?  Besides a braid?”

 

“Of course.  What were you thinking?”

 

“Can you do a bun?  On the top of my head.  Daddy said my mom used to wear her hair like that sometimes and he thought she was so beautiful like that.  I-I want to wear mine like that for him today.”

 

“I most definitely can.  We’ll have to straighten your hair first, but we can do it.”  Castiel’s heart ached for her.

 

“I’ll go get dressed.  I picked out a special outfit already.”

 

She left to go and get changed and for a while the room was quiet.

 

“This is good, that you’re taking her.  She needs this.”  Mary said softly.

 

“I do too.”  Dean took Castiel’s hand and looked him in the eye.  “Come with us please?”

 

“Of course.”  He brushed his fingers along Dean’s temple ever so gently.  

 

“I’m going to go change too.  I’ll be down in a few minutes.”  Dean stole one last kiss before getting up and heading upstairs.

 

When he came back downstairs Maya was sitting on the floor between Castiel’s legs letting him style her hair while she read one of the new books Jo had bought her.  She was dressed in a purple sweater with matching leggings that had little white snowflakes on them.  When he came around the front of the couch he saw a large white snowflake on the front of the sweater too.

 

“Where did you get that outfit?”  He asked.

 

“Mary and Dave got it for me.  It’s pretty, right?  Daddy always said I look pretty in purple.”  

 

“You do.  You look like an angel.”  Her uncle told her.

 

“Thank you, Uncle Dean.”

 

Castiel slid the last bobby pin into place and sat back.  “Ok, go see in the mirror.  I think it looks wonderful, and we didn’t even have to straighten it.”

 

Maya closed her book and jumped up, running for the downstairs bathroom to check her hair.  She was back in under a minute, smiling wide.

 

“It’s perfect!  Thank you!”

 

“Oh, let’s grab coats and get going.”  Dean said.

 

The ride to the cemetery was pleasant because Castiel spent it teaching Maya the Lord’s Prayer.  He promised to recite it with her once they arrived.  Since Adam had died, Dean had been taking Maya out here once a week, on Sunday mornings, but this week they were coming on Christmas.  He was glad he’d insisted she wear her boots as they trekked through the snow to her parents’ grave site.  Maya clutched the bouquet of carnations that she’d gone to the store with Castiel the day before and picked out tight to her chest.  She stood between them, leaning into Dean’s side until he circled an arm around her shoulders.

 

“Daddy, mommy, it’s Christmas.”  She said softly.  “Is it Christmas where you are?”

 

Dean looked at Castiel but neither man interrupted her.  Maya sighed before continuing.

 

“I miss you daddy, so, so much.  But I had a good Christmas.  Miss Mosely, she’s my therapist, she says it’s ok to miss you but still have a good time.  Uncle Dean says you’re back with mommy, and that you're both looking down on me from heaven, and I believe him.  Cas says so too.  You won’t believe it, but Cas and Uncle Dean are dating.  They love each other, daddy.  I love them both.  They help me not to forget you.  I don’t ever want to forget you.”  She turned the flowers around in her gloved hands for a minute before leaning down to lay them on the double grave.  Then she was back leaning into Dean’s side again.  She looked up at Castiel.

 

“Can we pray?  Daddy liked to pray sometimes.  He said it made him feel closer to God.”

 

Castiel held out his hand and Maya slipped hers into it.  He bowed his head and closed his eyes so she did the same.  Together they began reciting the prayer the way he had learned it as a child.

 

_ “Our father, Who art in heaven, _

_ Hallowed be thy name. _

_ Thy Kingdom come. _

_ Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. _

_ Give us this day our daily bread. _

_ And forgive us our trespasses, _

_ as we forgive those who trespass against us. _

_ And lead us not into temptation, _

_ but deliver us from evil _

_ For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever, Amen. _

 

Dean remained quiet during their prayer.  He knew it slightly different and he attributed that to the fact that Castiel had grown up Catholic and he hadn’t.  When he looked down at Maya he could see tears in her eyes.

 

“You ok, princess?”

 

“Yes.  Do you think daddy will like the flowers?  His favorite color was orange.  I chose the orangest ones they had.”  She sniffled and tugged her scarf up higher around her neck.

 

“I think he likes them a whole lot.  He always liked anything you gave him.  He’ll like these too.”  Dean assured her.  She looked up at him.

 

“I know you say not to take my hat off cause it’s cold, but…can I show him my bun?  Just for a minute?”

 

“Yeah, baby girl, go ahead.”

 

Castiel helped her carefully remove her hat and she took a step closer to her father’s grave.

 

“Look, daddy, I asked Cas to put my hair up in a bun, like mom’s.  I remembered you saying that when you met mommy, it was in school and her hair was up in a bun and you thought she was the most beautiful girl you’d ever seen.  Her hair reminded you of autumn leaves.  I like my red hair, and I’m glad it’s the same color as hers.  Cas says he’s going to teach me how to do all sorts of pretty braids and styles, and then I’ll come back and show you.  I love you, daddy.  I’m never, ever going to stop loving you, or missing you, but I know you want me to be happy, and I am.  I’m happy with Uncle Dean, and with Cas too.  Everything is good at school and Santa granted my wish this year, he really did.  My heart doesn’t hurt as much as it did, but Ms. Mosely says that doesn’t mean that I won’t stop missing you, it just means that I’m starting to heal, and that’s super important.  Uncle Dean and Uncle Sam miss you too.  Uncle Sam’s coming to visit next month and he’s going to come and visit you.”

 

Her voice cracked and Castiel put her hat back on before Dean scooped her up and hugged her tight.

 

“Do you want to go home, sweet pea?”  He asked her.

 

“I wish I could stay and talk to him for hours, but it’s so cold!”  She was crying as she buried her face against her uncle’s shoulder.

 

“I know, but I have an idea.  Why don’t we have a picnic with your dad when the weather gets nice?  On our Sunday visits, we’ll come, have lunch and talk to him.  How does that sound?  You can tell him all about school, your friends, and everything going on in your life.  As soon as it’s warm enough.”  Dean promised.

 

“Ok, I want to do that.”  She picked her head up and wiped at her eyes with the back of her glove.  Her blue eyes fell on the headstone once more.  “Merry Christmas, daddy, I love you.”

 

“Merry Christmas, baby brother, I love you too. And you as well, Anna.”  Dean added, barely managing not to choke up.

 

“Merry Christmas, Adam and Anna.”  Castiel said.

 

“Let’s go home.  We’ll have some hot chocolate and some of those gingerbread cookies Cas made, how does that sound?”  Dean hefted her higher on his hip.  She was really too big to carry, but as long as she needed him to comfort her, he’d do it.  A soft smile formed on her lips.

 

“I love hot chocolate.  Can I have two packets in my cup?”

 

He did a double take.  “Is that what Jo is teaching you?”

 

Her smile widened into a full blown grin and she started giggling as they made their way back to the car.

 

“You’re lucky you’re cute.”  He teased.

 

“I’d like two packets in my cup too.”  Castiel said as he followed after them.

 

“You’re lucky you’re cute too!”  Dean called back to him too.

 

  



End file.
